Torment of Paradise
by Furor Scribiendi
Summary: AU - The story of Jess, the sixth pilot and how she found love in the war, with a fellow comrade. Emotions, family and the past come back to haunt Jess in a big way. WARNING: Violent situations, attemped rape, wife abuse, implied yaoi . 4xOC *COMPLETED*
1. One

_**Torment of Paradise**_

Chapter 1

~*~

The cool breeze passed through the room, making the sleeping figure stir slightly. The person turned more now, a frown erasing away the content lines of sleep. A few minutes later, they woke up suddenly, cold sweat on their forehead, breath coming in ragged gasps. 

"Jeez…I need something to eat." came the shaky voice as they headed downstairs. 

Running a slightly trembling hand through their long hair, she headed for the kitchen intent on getting something calm their shaky stomach. A mug of hot chocolate was fixed and a few minutes later, she was sitting on the swing on the back porch, enjoying the view. 

The moon hung low in the sky, cresting the waves with luminous foam while the white sand of the beach below had turned a silver colour. It was so very beautiful out tonight yet she couldn't really enjoy it. All the emotions she had kept away under lock and key during the day surfaced at night; they tormented her sleep, her dreams…she was starting to fell worn down and tired. She simply watched the waves, falling into a trance that she almost didn't notice the person who sat next to her quietly. 

"Jess? Are you OK?" 

She turned around startled to see Quatre's tousled blond head, bright aqua green eyes and pajama clad form. "Quatre! I…I didn't hear you come." 

"Yeah…you didn't. What's wrong Jess?" he paused looking out over the water before looking back at her. "You seem preoccupied lately." 

"A bit." she looked back out over the water falling silent again. 

"Jess?" his hand rested on her shoulder gently. "Are you-" 

"So how was your day Quatre?" she asked softly, not looking at him still; she didn't want to deal with questions now. 

"It was good." his hand left her shoulder. "Didn't have a mission today for once. That was a bit weird I suppose." 

"Hn." she nodded her head slightly. "Wish I had that. Wish I had a lot of things." 

"Like?" 

She didn't look at him before standing up and walking to the edge of the water, letting it lap at her feet. She liked the way it felt on her bare feet, cooling and gentle. 

"Jess?" Quatre came up behind her. 

"Nothing." she whispered. "It's not important." she didn't want to burden him with her own sorrows; they each had enough of those as pilots. 

"Jess-" he started. 

She turned to him giving him gentle smile before her hand went to his cheek, holding it gently as she spoke softly. "Don't worry about me." 

"It must be important if it's troubling you." he replied softly as he watched the waves also. He looked back at her. Does it have to do with your mission from today?" 

"Well…"she trailed off a bit unsure of how to answer. "no…and yes." her arms crossed as the breeze picked up slightly, rustling their clothes. "I…"she shook her head, trying to brush it off. 

"What do you mean no and yes?" he asked, peering into her face with a concerned expression. 

She paused; there was that tone in his voice, he really wanted an answer; if she didn't tell him now, he'd keep trying for it…he was as stubborn as her…she loved that sometimes; now she wished he wasn't like that at all. 

"Jess…" 

"Quatre…"she looked at him, unsure. "have you ever…have you ever…never mind." she gave a heavy sigh. "Just never mind. Let's go back inside and sleep OK? Please?" 

"Sure." he said as they walked away from the water's edge. "Are you going back to sleep?" 

"Um…yes?" she offered with a weak smile. 

"Want some company?" he asked as they headed back into the kitchen. 

"Company would be nice…if you're not tired." she looked at him with a smile. "If you are, I want you to go and sleep OK?" 

"I will…Allah knows you get on our cases about it." he chuckled as they headed into the living room. 

"Yes well, I see Duo party enough all night and he's barely able to get up in the morning." she muttered as they plopped themselves on the couch. "How he's so bright and cherry in the morning is beyond me." 

"You're just saying that because you're not a morning person." he laughed as he picked up the remote. "Is there anything decent to watch at this hour?" 

"Probably some cheesy B-class movie. Like 'Mothra' "she chuckled. "Just surf around and we'll find something." 

Settling down on the couch together, they went through the channels before deciding on one. 

"Where exactly are they?" Quatre asked in a whisper as the people moved around on the screen. 

"In Mexico…looking at Aztec temples." she replied back softly. "You know that place just below America?" 

I know, I know. I thought you'd fallen asleep. Wanted to make sure you were up." he chuckled. 

"I'm wide awake." she replied, stifling her yawn. _'Like hell I am.'_

"Oh. OK then. What's that giant snake thing with the feathers around its neck again?" 

"Quezacotl. He was the main deity of the Aztecs and you know what those temples were used for?" 

"Nope. Care to enlighten me Ms. 'History Buff'?" 

"Funny you." she smacked him playfully. "They used to sacrifice people to him, to ensure a bountiful crop and such." 

"Sacrifice?" he looked at the screen a bit squeamish. "How many? I can still see the bloodstains." 

"Sometimes it could be hundreds in a day." 

"That's kind of horrendous. All those people…" 

"But Quatre…"she yawned a bit. "is it really any different from what we're doing now? We still sacrifice people…but to a different 'god'…or rather 'gods' I should say." 

"True…but that's why some people use pacifism now; to eliminate the need for violence hopefully. Granted back then it would have been survival of the fittest…but still……" 

She chuckled slowly at the queasy look on his face. "Aren't you glad I didn't tell you what they did with the bodies afterwards." 

"Why? What did they do?" he looked at her, curious but afraid almost. 

"Trust me…if the sacrifices made your stomach turn, this would make you freak out." 

"Did they let crocodiles eat them?" he asked. 

"Nope." she stretched out before sinking back into her chair loosely. "I don't think you really want to know." 

A mixed look crossed his face for a second. "Yes I do." 

She looked at him, vision starting to go fuzzy. "You really what to know?" 

"Yes." 

She shook her head closing her eyes; it was even harder to open them. "They ate them." 

"You mean…they ate them? Like cook over a fire and eat?" 

"Yeah." through her blurred vision, she caught the look on his face. "I warned you Quatre." 

"Yeah I know. Wasn't expecting it to be that though." he looked at the screen before looking at her again. "They really ate people?" 

"Yup. Look if this is starting to get to you, we can watch something else." 

"No, no it's all right. I'm actually sort of interested in it. Sacrifice and cannibalism aside." 

"Good. I don't think I would have let you change the channel anyways." she managed in a sleepy voice; everything was fading in and out so fast. 

"You and what army?" his disjointed voice replied. 

"Just you wait and see Quatre Raberba Winner…I'll…I'll." she fell off as sleep claimed her. She barely realized that she fell into a warm, soft object that soothed away her troubles…for a bit at least. 

~*~


	2. Two

_**Torment of Paradise**_

Chapter 2

~*~

The sunlight streamed in through the gaps in the blinds making the blond haired figure on the couch squint before opening his eyes to slits. 

"Oh!!" he looked around; it was a bit startling to not wake up in his room. _'That's the last time I sleep on the couch.'_ He tried to sit up but found a gentle weight on his chest keeping him down. 

He gave a gentle smile seeing Jess' face relaxed with sleep. She was lying to him, he could feel it; he always seemed able to sense people's emotion…but Jess gave off a cloudy air that was extremely difficult to read. Carefully he slid out from underneath her, leaving her on the couch; it seemed like this was the first bit of decent sleep she had gotten in a while. With a yawn, he went to the kitchen, getting himself something to eat before he sat down at the table. 

"Morning Quatre!" 

"Huh?" his head snapped up to see Duo come into the kitchen, fixing himself his customary cup of tea; he was forbidden to drink coffee after his last 'rampage' from a morning fix. "Oh. Morning Duo. How come you're so cheery?" 

"No reason. Or maybe because I didn't have to listen to Wu-man rant about the injustices of this war last night." he chuckled as he sat down at the table. "What's up with you? You look like you were up all night." 

"No not really." he offered. "Just…watched some TV…trying to beat insomnia." 

"Uh huh. Do you know where Jess is? I think she borrowed my shirt and I'd like it back." 

"She still asleep." 

"You mean she's still in the house? Hell I thought she went out. Where is she?" 

"On the couch. Don't wake her up please." 

"Why'd I do that?" he gave Quatre a look. "I know she's been getting no sleep. Besides I'm not that foolish as too-" Duo was cut off by a loud yelp from the living room. 

"What the hell is your problem Wufei?! Haven't you ever learned to look before you bloody well sit down?!" 

"Baka onna!! You shouldn't even be asleep on the couch in the first place!! Sleep in your bed like a normal person!!" 

"What? And be like you?!" a loud snort came. "Think I'll be weird thank you!!" 

Quatre looked up to see a very grumpy Jess stalk into the kitchen, fixing herself a mug of hot chocolate. She mumbled a barely heard 'Good morning' before she sat, brooding into the steaming liquid. 

"Wufei is one messed up guy……baka onna…me……the bloody nerve he has……idiot probably doesn't know that I know what he called me. All those friggin' rants………get to his thick head………inflated ego…" she muttered darkly before she took a sip of her drink, blinking rapidly. 

"As I was saying…"Duo continued, trying not to laugh and have Jess turn on him. "I wouldn't be as foolish as too wake her up. As shown by Wu-man back there." 

"Touché." Quatre agreed before turning his attention to his plate. 

He absorbed himself into his meal, a voice finally breaking into his thoughts. 

"Quatre. Quatre?" 

"Yes Jess?" he looked up to see only her at the table; she seemed calmer now. 

"I……I want…I want to thank you for last night. I know you didn't have to stay up with me…but…you did…and-" 

"It's all right. You seemed like you could have used the company." he looked up at her a bit shyly; he didn't know quite why but he liked the way she looked in the morning; clothes all rumpled, ebony hair flying around all over the place, untamable almost, the slightly euphoric look on her face if she woke up by herself and- 

"Quatre?" 

"Hm?" he asked focusing is attention; what was getting into him? "I'm terribly sorry. Did you say something?" 

"I asked if you would like some help with Sandrock. You know…any small repairs…any thing?" she looked at him questioningly. 

"No, it's all right I can handle it myself. Besides you seem to be getting more missions than us lately; you should be the one taking care of Anansi shouldn't you?" 

"I only have to run a systems check. No biggie." she smiled at him. "You busy later on today?" 

"No…not really…why?" 

"Wanna hang out or something? Go to the mall…shop…see a movie?" 

"OK. Sounds like fun. Around…two good?" 

"Sure. I'll probably be done by one…if I don't have to smack my laptop to get it working again. I think it likes antagonizing me you know." 

"I think it's just you sometimes." he looked at her. "Remember the time when you couldn't figure out what was wrong with it? And it turned out that you didn't have in the jack properly?" 

"Hey, I may be a Gundam pilot and know far too many useless facts for my own good…but that doesn't make me a genius, OK?" she laughed as she stood up from the table, taking his plate and putting it in the sink with her mug. "So two then OK? I'll meet you there?" 

" All right then; two o'clock. Bye Jess." he called as she walked out of the kitchen with a wave. 

Getting up he went to the sink doing the morning's breakfast dishes; there wasn't really much point. Trowa, Heero and Wufei still hadn't eaten yet, but he needed to do something to calm his mind. The mall with Jess for half a day almost…then the movie theatre…the movie theatre…he paused in mid- rinse, hands frozen in the soapy water; it got dark in a movie theatre…and he would be all alone with a girl. A very good-looking girl he had to admit. 

'Great. This is just great. I've set myself up for about two hours of hell in the dark. I hope the movie requires a lot thought.' He returned to scrubbing the dishes, trying to keep his mind from running away with itself. 

~*~

Quatre looked around nervously before looking up at the burly figure by his side. "You really didn't have to come you know Rashid. I can look after myself you know." 

"One never knows what can happen at places Master Quatre…much less a crowded mall." he frowned, looking around. "This fellow pilot said they were meeting you here at two, right?" 

"Yes. It just turned two Rashid." he said looking at his watch. "Please stop worrying. I know that-" 

"Hi Quatre! Almost didn't see you behind this guy here. Come on!! Lets' hit the stores!!" she took his arm and started walking. 

"Umm Jess…this is Rashid." he said, trying to not let his face go red. "Rashid…my friend Jess." 

"Oh," her face went bright fire engine red as she scooted closer to Quatre's side, arm still in his. "Salaam. I didn't think…that you were with Quatre." 

"That's quite all right Miss Jess." he said graciously. "I'm just here to make sure nothing happens to Master Quatre." 

"But…we're at the mall." she looked at him puzzled. 

"Exactly." 

"OK then. I'm not letting this stop me. Where do you want to go first Quatre?" she asked as they started walking a bit ahead of Rashid for privacy's sake. 

He looked at her with a smile; she seemed able to go with anything that was thrown her way, such resiliency. "Well…I do need some more clothes." 

"Me too. OK, we'll go get clothes first, eat some lunch or dinner, whatever and go catch a movie. Sounds good?" 

"Yeah. Let's stop in here first; they have some nice clothes." he stopped as she paused looking somewhere curiously. "Is something wrong?" 

"I thought...I thought…I saw someone familiar. Must be my imagination. Come on; let's see what we can find." she said as they continued on in. 

He looked at her before turning his attention to the clothing. This time he wasn't fooled for a bit; the look on her face had been clear as day. It was as if she saw a haunting ghost. 

~*~


	3. Three

**_Torment of Paradise_**

Chapter 3

~*~

Feeling a bit weary, Jess sank down into the soft covers of her bed, plastic bags surrounding her. 

'That was the best shopping trip ever!!' Sitting up she went through her bags, putting some thing away on hangars, but a good portion of them went into her travel bag that she always had handy, in case she needed to get out quickly. _'Too bad Quatre had to go take care of that thing...whatever it was that was so important.'_ She pulled out the tops that Quatre had bought for her. It was actually one of those holey tops and he'd gotten her a red shirt to wear underneath the black; he said it had looked so good on her it would have been bad to not buy it. 

"Not buy it…" she murmured, feeling her face flush again; it had done that the first time when he said that. "He's such a sweet guy." she hung it up on the wire hanger. 

"Jess? You in here?" Duo's voice followed the knock. 

"Yeah. Come on in." she replied. "Hey Duo…what do you think of this?" she held up the two tops. 

He whistled. "I think you're out to get someone Jess. Who is it? Can I run them through the wringer first?" he rubbed his hands together eagerly. 

"No Duo…it's no one." she laughed putting it back in the closet. "Quatre bought it for me." 

"Quatre?! Bought you that?! Today?!" he looked amazed. 

"Yeah…so? You make this sound like a big deal Duo." she shrugged. "It was very nice of him to, seeing as how it cost about fifty dollars. Besides, he wouldn't take no for an answer." a smile came to her face. "He got very persistent." 

Duo scratched his head. "Still…Quatre you know…it was Quatre. He usually buys the pink shirts, khaki slacks and vest and he's like done." 

"Not no more. He got different things this time." 

"You made him? You actually got him out of his usual stuff?" 

"No…he wanted to get different things. I just told him what looked God awful on him." 

"I see." he paused. "So what did ya get?" 

"Not much. Some stuff that I needed; necessities you know." 

"Uh-huh. Since when did 'necessities' include new swimsuits?" he grinned at her after peering into a bag. 

"Yes…well…" she cleared her throat. "it doesn't hurt to be prepared in case of an emergency. What if I have to go undercover in the Tropics or out in the Pacific, hm?" she took the bag away from his reach. 

"Yeah we all want the mission that will send us there." Duo laughed. "But it's never gonna happen." 

"Well see...I'd get my work done before going to the beach and drinking Mai Tais." she shot him a look. 

"Anyways…" he looked around innocently. "I was wondering if you had that black shirt of mine. I loaned it to you right?" 

"What if I said you loaned it to Wufei?" she smirked. 

"I'd say that's 'wonderful' 'cause he's been acting like he has a pole up his butt again." 

Jess rolled her eyes. "His 'I-am-holier-than-thou' attitude?" 

"You got it. So do you have it?" 

"Yup. Just washed too." reaching into the closet, she pulled out his shirt. "Thanks a lot Duo. You were a lifesaver to loan me the shirt." 

"No problem. Now that you have a black shirt of your own, I expect to find mine a lot more often and not have to raid your room…" 

"Yeah yeah; I know, I know. Now leave me be to put away my new stuff." 

"All right then. See ya Jess!" 

"Actually…Duo wait a second." she called, making him pause. "Did the phone ring earlier? I thought I heard it." 

"Yeah it did. Why?" 

"What did Quatre say?" she asked. 

"I really don't get it. How do you always know when Quatre calls? You never even were near the phone!!" 

She shrugged. "Call it women's intuition if you will. Let me try even further. He's not coming back tonight is he?" 

"I swear you don't need a phone at all. I still can't figure out how you women manage to do that…like you're born with powers or something…" his mutters were cut off by the quiet whoosh of her door. 

Smiling she sat down on the edge of her bed, looking over all the clothes that she had bought today. More than half of them were good for the summer that was coming up soon. If only the war would be over by then. If only… Shaking off her thoughts, she put away the rest of her clothes and headed for the bathroom, drawing herself a bath. She was well in the process of relaxing and unwinding when the door was banged on and Wufei testily told her that an hour had passed and demanded his right to the bathroom. 

"Wufei…" she called out, hands disturbing the quiet waters. "I am a woman. What makes you think you can get me out of here sooner that I want? I wish you all the best of luck in your…'endeavour'." she chuckled to herself hearing his outraged splutters coming through the door. 

Resting her head against the cool porcelain tub edge, she smoothed her hair back. _'I should see a hairdresser sometime…fix up my hair…Wait a minute... I don't have time to see a hairdresser. I want to see a hairdresser in the middle of a war? What the hell is wrong with me? Shopping, yes; I don't need to get vain about my appearance though.'_ She rose abruptly out of the tub, wrapping her towel around herself before she scurried down to her room. Changing into her pajamas, she headed down stairs, fixing herself a quick snack before going back up and crawling into bed. 

"Now I know I need sleep. Talking of going to the hairdresser's. Man I really gotta get some shut eye. Maybe I should invest in buying some sleeping pills to help my insomnia." 

Talking quietly to herself, she slowly lulled herself to sleep. And for the second night in a row it was free and not haunted by the past and the present. 

~*~

"Beep! Beep! Beep!" 

"Go away." she mumbled, head going back underneath her pillow in an effort to drown out the noise. "Go away." the wonderful dream was slipping away; she rarely had those any more, she didn't want it to end. 

"Beep! Beep! Beep!" the noise was loud, insistent and uncaring. 

"Fine! You evil little son of a-" 

"Beep! Beep! Beep!" 

Stalking over to her laptop, she opened it and stopped the infernal noise. A window had popped up, with V's wizened face on it. The one who had taken her away so many years ago. 

"How are you Jess? Fine I should hope?" 

"Would be if you didn't wake me up." she muttered resentfully. She couldn't even recall a wisp of the dream now, but she had a warm, content feeling deep inside her; that was all that remained. 

"Well there are more important things to take care of." another window popped up. "Here is your new mission. You can fly this one solo or bring backup with you." 

"What the Hell do I need backup for? I'm trained, I can kick ass so well it should be a sin. What makes you think I need backup?" 

"Forget I even asked." V shook her head. "Anything else?" 

"No. Now let me go so I can get this done and over with." she pushed the button, terminating the connection. 

She sat at her desk for a few minutes, staring at the laptop; she didn't want to move at all; the moment she stood up, she knew she would automatically take the ready bag, stick on her shoes, get Anansi and leave without looking back. 

It was the rising part that really killed her. Her feet felt like lead as she moved through her room, finding the small things she'd need to carry with her. Her entire body seemed to be a lump that refused to move with her normal efficient speed. Eventually she found herself at the front door, the entire house dark and silent around her; everyone was fast asleep at this time. She opened the door and made it half way out before she paused and turned back, going up the stairs. 

_'Should I…or shouldn't I…'_ Her hand rested on the doorknob, uncertain. Then she turned it with conviction and peered in. There in the bed was Quatre's still figure; he must have come back extremely late. She felt her heart stick in her throat, seeing him there like that for some reason, all that moonlight streaming in onto his figure. One foot moved in front of the other until she found herself at the side of Quatre's bed, looking down at his face. 

_'Quatre……'_ she bent down and kissed his forehead gently; she had the feeling that this would be the last she would see of him in a while. 'I'll come back here one day.' she stood and walked out quietly, shutting the door noiselessly. _'Will you come back here one day too? Come back to this little paradise that we shared?'_

~*~


	4. Four

_**Torment of Paradise**_

Chapter 4

~*~

Quatre looked out the window flap, not too sure what he was looking for. He had long since left the beach house…about three months ago. That was the last time he had seen Jess. He'd seen the others from time to time…but from her not a word. He couldn't reach her on her cell, he couldn't reach her at all; it was as if she had dropped off the face of the Earth. 

_'Jess…'_ he turned his attention back to the debate going on between then Maganaucs. 

"Master Quatre, don't you agree that it may be necessary to shoot down any planes that come over the area?" Abdul asked turning to the youth. "What if they're carrying bombs or something? The whole area would go up in smoke!" 

"Abdul, this is a precarious time we're in. One wrong move, one wrong stance, and the whole place goes up like a powder keg. We're already in a tight spot as it is." Rashid countered. "Master Quatre, do you have any suggestions?" 

"We still sacrifice people…but to different gods." he mused quietly to himself. 

The Maganaucs looked around and then at each other in puzzlement to their young master's strange words. 

"Master Quatre…are you all right?" Abdul looked at him. "You don't seem ill at all. Have you been out in the sun too much?" 

"No no, I'm fine. I say we claim neutral and stick to it by all means. But who are we to enforce it upon the people? We're neutral…so we don't involve ourselves in others affairs. Just keep our own place in line." 

"So…say we don't claim a side but still fight anyways? Are you sure of this Master Quatre? If the other nations find out…" Rashid asked. 

"Can you think of a better idea? I for one can't. It just means that we'll have to hide ourselves better and be more careful." 

There were murmurs of agreement around the room, making Rashid sigh and shake his head. "All right then, that's what we'll do. I want all those suits in perfect working order, especially Master Quatre's!" he barked. "Get to it!" 

The rest of the crew rushed out at his order, not quite willing to cross him in his present mood. With a sigh Rashid sank down into the chair almost wearily, a hand to his temples. 

"Here. Have some tea Rashid. You look exhausted." Quatre poured him a cup and slid it towards him. "My decision isn't making this any easier is it?" 

"No…it's not that…not really. There're rumors of new OZ pilot from the Pacific..relentless. We're hearing rumors that this person might be shipped out over here to deal with the 'rebels'." 

"When you say relentless, just how relentless are you talking about?" 

"As in utter devastation Master Quatre. Gives no quarter. We can't afford to have someone like that out here in the Middle East. It would be disastrous." 

"I see your point." he paused for a second. "Is there any way to confirm this?" 

"Unless you know an expert hacker, no." 

"OK. We'll find out by tomorrow then. I'm sure he won't mind." he rose leaving the tent. "I'll go and call him now." 

Not waiting for Rashid's protest, he walked out amongst the sandy dunes, heading for the house just over the hill. Cold air blasted him as soon as he walked in heading for the living room; it made him shiver slightly. 

"It's up far too high." he muttered picking up the phone with chilling fingers and dialing the number. 

"Hello?" came the slightly question tinged voice. 

"Hi Heero. It's Quatre calling. I was wondering if you could do a small favour for me?" 

"Hn. I'm listening." 

"There's rumors out here about some pilot who gives no quarter from the Pacific. Can you confirm this for me?" 

"I'll call you back." was the simple response. 

"Thanks Heero. I owe you one. Bye." he hung up shivering a bit. "I'm going out for a walk. This is ridiculous! Too hot outside and too cold inside. There's no winning is there?" I might as well be boiling hot instead of freezing cold." he muttered, going back to the door. 

Bored out of his mind he started walking down into the small town, glad to not have Rashid…Abdul…have anybody hovering over him like a protective shield. _'But still…it's not the same as when you have someone else here with you.'_ He continued walking up and down the stalls, looking at this item and looking at that item. Then as he was wandering through, something at a stall caught his eye. It was an amber pendant carved out in the shape of a spider; fat little body, delicate yet tough legs, sun gleaming off of the curves… 

"Excuse me." he leaned over trying to see the person. "How much is this?" 

"This?" a person suddenly lurched into view, looking at the necklace Quatre was pointing out. "It's-" 

"Actually never mind. I'll take it." he said, earning a look of eager surprise from the vendor. 

"You like it? I have many other pieces that I could show you if you like." 

"No no. Just this piece thank you." he replied politely. 

"OK OK Sir. Do you know who this spider is supposed to be?" 

"No I don't. Who?" 

"Anansi." 

_'Anansi.'_ He wiped the brief look of sadness off of his face. "Anansi was…" 

"Oh he's an old one Anansi is. The trickster…from Africa and he hopped across the pond. "Not many know about him though. You buying this for a girlfriend?" 

"No…my friend. She kinda has this thing for spiders one could say." 

"Then she'll probably know about Anansi then. Ask her and find out. I don't know much about Anansi either so hey…look who's talking!" 

"Hmm... Thank you Sir." he said taking the bag from the vendor and heading back to the house; he'd been gone long enough and was probably going to get a tongue lashing of a lifetime from Rashid and Abdul. But it was worth it for a few lonely quiet moments alone. 

"Master Quatre!! Where have you been?! We've turned this place upside down looking for you!!" Abdul said as he walked back into the compound. 

"I went into town Abdul. You guys don't need to fuss so much over me you know." 

"Don't need to fuss over you?! Master Quatre, we're in the middle of a war and you say to not fuss about this kind of stuff?!" Abdul looked ready to burst, but instead turned and stalked away, mutters going with him. "Don't know any more…wants Oz to get him…fallen off his rocker…" 

Quatre looked down at the little box in his hand before he looked at Abdul's retreating figure; he was most likely going to get Rashid here as well. _'Yup. I really must stop this psychic thing. It would help if they weren't so predictable sometimes too.'_ Quatre stood there trying to look his meekest; it always seemed to go faster that way. 

~*~

Lying in bed, Quatre looked up at the ceiling eyes following no discernible pattern. He didn't really want to get up out of bed; he knew exactly what lay on the other side besides war…probably the only good spot in this fight that dragged on seemingly forever. But still he got himself out of bed, showered, dressed and headed downstairs, ready and waiting for it. 

"Surprise!! Happy Birthday Quatre!!" came the cheer from the crowd in the room. 

He smiled as everyone expected him to do; it was the least he could do for them on his birthday; they had gone through all the trouble to arrange this. Even all his fellow pilots were there…all except one. 

"Happy Birthday Quatre." Trowa said quietly coming up to him. "How are you?" 

"I'm fine." another contrived smile as he looked around. "You guys didn't have to go to the trouble to do all of this for me." 

Trowa shrugged. "Would you expect any less from Duo?" 

"True I suppose." a mock chuckle. "Do you think that maybe we could talk in the-" 

"Hey Quatre come on!! You get to blow out all fifteen candles now. Don't keep us all waiting!!" Duo dragged Quatre off before he could finish his sentence. 

Obligingly, he blew out the candles, cut the cake and saw to it that everyone was enjoying themselves with food, drink, non-alcoholic of course to Duo's dismay, and dance. It was only when Duo decided to cause a 'small catastrophe' with the bass system that Quatre managed to sneak out the garden in the back for some quiet. He seated himself on a bench, simply looking at the flowers before Trowa came out and sat beside him. 

"What did you want to talk about Quatre?" came his soft tenor. 

"Trowa…is it right to think of one person so often?" he glanced at Trowa before looking back at the flower. 

"Pardon?" 

"I can't stop thinking about her Trowa. About where she might be right now…what she might be doing…if she's getting enough sleep…why can't I stop thinking about her Trowa?" 

There came a lengthy pause. "I don't know how you feel about her…so I can't answer that. How do you feel about her?" 

"I'm…I'm…not too sure Trowa." 

"Then you shouldn't be asking that question now. Wait and see. Give it time and the answer will come to you Quatre. Beyond that…" he gave a little shrug. "I don't have anymore advice." 

"Thank you Trowa. Forgive your foolish friend for wasting your time." 

"I'm actually thanking you. Wufei looked about ready to hang Duo back there and Heero was the only one holding him back. If looks could kill…" he trailed off, giving Quatre a quirky smile before turning to go back inside but not before touching his shoulder briefly, trying to comfort him. 

Quatre simply sat outside for a bit longer before he went upstairs to his room; he really wasn't in the mood for a party today and didn't have the heart to deal with all those guests now. Slowly, he walked up the stairs before closing the door with a silent whoosh. 

"Huh?" he froze, looking at the neatly wrapped package on the bed; it screamed Jess at him with all the crisp lines and fancy bright ribbon and the card tucked in at ninety degrees exactly. 

He approached it slowly, as if it would disappear like a djinn. With hesitant hands he reached out and touched it gently; it still stayed there. Seating himself on the edge of the bed, he picked it up and placed it on his lap. He removed the card first, taking it out of the envelope almost reverently and opening it carefully. 

_ 'Dear Quatre, _

I hope you're having a fun birthday and Duo didn't destroy anything really expensive……oi vay there probably goes your stereo system… Oh well I saw this card in the store and it reminded me so much of you that I had to get it to go with your gift…… even though they didn't quite go together. I wish I could be there and give you hugs. Since I don't do birthday beats anymore I'd have given you fifteen hugs. Man I really get off topic here; I'm rambling and such a procrastinator. Anyways I wish I could be there on your birthday……and I miss you a lot. Even more than those little chocolates you get for me from that place you won't tell me about. 

XOXO, 

Jess' 

Closing the card, Quatre looked down to see a little cartoon desert sheik facing his camel with a sort of angry glare; he couldn't help but laugh at the little comment she had scribbled on the front. 

_'I thought YOU remembered the way to the oasis!!'_

Chuckling, he lifted off the lid to reveal pile of paper inside. "She's also very tissue happy." he mumbled in a cracked sort of voice. 

He pulled the delicate paper aside very carefully to reveal another box inside. Shaking his head he pulled it out and opened it very carefully; these things were quite large and he didn't want to send the whole box over the edge of his knees. 

"Oh…she didn't…" he murmured taking out the book and looking at the glossy cover plastered with composers; this book must have at least one piece from his favorite composers. 

Reaching into the box again, he pulled out a whole bunch of books until finally he came to a small tied one. Slowly, he pulled the ribbon loose, letting the silk run over his fingers. The pages turned slowly one by one as he looked through the little photo album, some old pictures, some new ones of her. The words she wrote in the front echoed out in his head. 

'Some are old, some are new; some are together and some are apart. But they are memories nonetheless. And no matter what happens you'll always be my friend and I am always yours.' 

Closing his eyes, he felt tears run down his face; she must have been extremely busy and yet she still found time to do all of this for his birthday. He wiped away the salty liquid as he went to his window and looked out to the starry night sky. 

"Thank you Jess." he whispered softly. "Wherever you are……thank you." 

~*~


	5. Five

_**Torment of Paradise**_

Chapter 5

~*~

The cold air and snow whipped her in the face as she headed for the building in the back. Running the rest of the way she made it into the hangar, forcing the door open against the wind. 

"Jeez...this is brutal. Why the hell did V send me here? Russia of all the bleedin' places on Earth." she muttered going up to the ancient coffee machine and pouring herself a cup. 

Wrapping her hands around the cracked barely warm cup, she took a sip of the liquid, making a face at the taste. "Where's a Second Cup when you need one? I need my White Hot." she muttered. 

Slowly she made her way into the hangar going to sit on Anansi's cold metal chest. "Well my friend here we are in the pits of Russia...and for what? We've been here almost four months now...and still no orders from V. What the hell is she waiting for?" she took a sip of the awful coffee. "I just want to get out of here. See, I got too used to that beach." she fell silent looking at her Gundam's gleaming blue and black paint. "I got too used to that beach." 

She gave a wistful smile thinking back to the night on the sand with Quatre. She should have told him, she felt so bad keeping it from him. She knew he was worried about her as was Duo...but she simply couldn't bring herself to- 

"Huh?" her head snapped up hearing a ringing echo go through the hangar; she was the only one here. 

Putting down her mug, she slid down off of Anansi silently, taking her gun out from its side holster and cocking it. She moved through the shadows, trying to find the source of the disturbance. Then a clink came from the other side of Anansi, making her slip to the side quickly; now she could see the silhouette of a figure from the side trying to stay hidden. 

_'Hmph.'_ She retreated silently, moving around to the other side coming up from behind. Even now she could see the shadow that stirred slightly. Detaching herself from the side of her suit she crept up to the person, placing the muzzle at the back of their head. 

"Toss the gun on the ground." a skitter went across the floor. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't blow your head off." she growled; she would much rather be trying to keep warm than dealing with an intruder. 

The person froze for a second before trying to kick Jess' feet from under her. 

"Ah ah. I asked you a question." she said moving back as she anticipated the person's action. "Now why don't you step into the light here so I can get a good look at the person who's probably out for my head." 

She narrowed her gaze as the person started to walk forward, gun moving to the area over the heart if a quick shot was needed. But her gun muzzle dropped slightly in shock as the features of the person came into view as they turned. 

"Lara?" she whispered, almost uncertain if what she was seeing was real. "Is...is that really you?" 

"Yes..." came the sad sigh. "it's me Jess. It is me. Good old Lara." 

Jess frowned slightly at the bitter words. "What the Hell are you doing here?" 

"I can ask the same of you...with a Gundam no less." 

"Careful..." she raised the muzzle back up training it over her heart. "I'm not quite beyond killing you...especially after what you did to me before." 

"It was meant as a joke you know-" 

"Trussing me up like a pig and leaving me in the back of a trouncing poultry truck bound to New Jersey is not a joke." she hissed. "You and your clique sisters..." she glared at her even more. "Still doesn't explain why you're here." 

"Do you want to truth?" a smirk came to the colourless lips. "As a former sister you are entitled to it." 

"Sure...why not...cause at the rate you're going I'm really gonna put you out of your misery." 

The smirk vanished abruptly. "I was sent here to kill you." 

"Who's orders?" 

"Lady Une. Find the Gundam pilot 06 and eliminate." there came a brief pause. "I would have gotten you earlier if it wasn't for those two guys." 

"Two guys?" 

"A blond by the name of Quatre Raberba Winner, am I not correct? And someone else." 

"So?" 

"I didn't know you were in the habit of keeping company with traitors...I know that your blond friend is a pilot as well. I should have knocked him off first and then you; saved myself the trouble." 

Jess felt her finger itch to pull the trigger; if not for the feelings inside....... "So you're here to kill me, huh?" 

Lara nodded her head. "Not that I wanted to...but...someone's life was on the line at the time. Someone important." 

"Nice to see that you care for once in your life." she backed up against Anansi and pulled herself up. "But it looks like you've missed you chance." 

"Are you so sure? I saw you two at the mall...you seemed pretty attached to him. I could just make life unbearable for you..." 

She shot daggers at the girl below her. "To think I called you friend once." 

"I still would be too...if not for certain things such as-" 

"Can it." she ordered. "I'm not falling for it a second time." the cockpit door opened. "Anything to say before I disappear my 'dear friend'?" 

"Watch your back...I will get my mission done even if it takes me the rest of this war." the words were said with a weary resignation. 

"How nice. Think I'll be off now if you don't mind." with a mocking bow, she disappeared into the cockpit and activated her Gundam. 

Monitors on, she looked down at the still figure of Lara. She did seem pretty sad and she would have liked to go and comfort her as she had once...but then she remembered the painful jolting drive of some nine hundred miles with pecking beaks, gouging claws and irritating feathers. With a resolute face she walked out in to the snow that was now a full fledged blizzard. 

"Come on Anansi. Forget V. We operate as we see fit now." she said quietly as they went through the white flakes. The Gundam made a series of beeping noises that made her smile. "Yeah sure we can head to someplace warmer. Maybe the Middle East...we can stop by and see Quatre." 

She fell silent now as she headed for the nearest OZ base for a carrier plane; they wouldn't expect someone to try and take a plane in this weather and she willingly run the risk. _'Quatre.'_ She chewed her lip a bit anxiously; if Lara had been trailing her for so long what was to say that someone wasn't after Quatre right now. Fear clutched at her heart hard as she continued on. _'What are you worried about Jess? He's got forty Maganacs right there with him. Nothing can possibly happen to him. Rashid will see to it; I know he will. Beside if the mall was any indication, he can't go anywhere without one of them going also.'_ Worries soothed temporarily, she calmed herself down and turned on her heat sensors to find the buildings. _'Quatre will be perfectly fine.'_

~*~

"Ma'am? Ma'am? Are you all right Ma'am?" 

The voice brought her back to reality from her dark dreams. She found herself looking at the concerned face of a steward. "Yes...I'm fine thank you." 

She got an unsure look before the man went away, closing the door behind him. She rubbed her face with her hands feeling a bit weary before looking out of the window. The countryside was passing by in a blur of shades of green. She turned away from it, feeling almost disgusted with herself; she'd felt this way ever since seeing Lara again; all the bittersweet hurt came back twice as hard; plus, with the gnawing worry for Quatre and she felt like she was ready to collapse. 

"Friggin' bitch." she muttered, not knowing if she truly meant the words. 

Lara had been her friend once...her only best friend. Then came the night she thought she was going to die; and then Lara had the nerve, the audacity, to come up to her in school and say that it was all an initiation test. She had lost it that day and went of on a justified rant against her ex-friends. All the other girls hadn't cared...but Lara had seemed so conflicted......as if she didn't know whether to go against the ones she called her 'friends'. 

"If she couldn't stick up for her beliefs then..." she shrugged to herself, returning to brooding out of the window. "You have to learn to fight your own battles." 

Rising, she went out of the cabin, heading to the bathroom. Pausing for a moment, she changed direction and went for the dining car. Entering she froze for a split second before continuing on; the place was filled with OZ soldiers. 

'Just my bleedin' luck. This is just wonderful.' She continued on through the aisle. 'I swear if-' 

"Jess!! Over here!!" 

Glancing up at the voice, she saw the same person in question sitting at a table with a long blond haired man. 

_'Zechs Marquise.'_ Her mind was automatically going through his entire dossier; she researched her people thoroughly. Her feet carried her over reluctantly; it was the polite thing to do. "Lara." she said in a cold voice. 

"Imagine meeting you on the same train. Have a seat please." 

She looked at the seat Lara gestured to before sitting down tentatively and silently. 

"I didn't really get to talk to you last time. How have you been?" 

"Good." 

"That all? Good?" 

There was a true expression in Lara's eyes that made her soften slightly. "Yes. I've been busy with things." 

"Such as?" 

She raised her guard slightly. "Nothing much. My studies." _'Your move.'_

"Really? What are you studying?" 

"History." _'Set up a good defense and guard here.'_

"Military I hope." 

"No." 

"Why not? Wouldn't something like that be crucial?" 

"If you've studied the history of warfare you'd have realized how futile it really is." she said in a soft voice. 

"Warfare history?" Lara looked puzzled. "I was never really good at history; math was more my thing; care to explain it to me?" 

"People simply repeat the same things, the same attacks, over again getting absolutely nowhere. That's why she didn't study it Lara." came Zechs quiet voice, filling in the rest of her words. "It's simply repetition that ended in bloodshed." 

"That's right." she looked at Zechs carefully. 'The dossier was right. Never ever underestimate him.' "I more study the effects of wars and the historical impact." 

"Ah. So what would you say the impact of mobile suits are today? Are we living with repercussions that can still haunt us in the future?" Lara's eyes glimmered with something she couldn't place for a moment; was it triumph? Or was it gloating? "Something that we maybe should or shouldn't let go of?" 

"Let me get back to you on that with a clear cut answer." she rose. "I gotta go now. My stop is coming up in a few and I don't want to miss it." she said. "Lara....Lara's friend." she said politely before she turned and made her way out of the car. 

Making it back to her empty cabin, she sat down anxiously trying not too worry herself sick. She simply had to leave Anansi to get some replacement parts in the town over...nothing could have happen to her beloved suit...she had hidden it well. But even as the stop came and she didn't get off, the worry didn't end as she saw Zechs and Lara disembark, looking around as they walked. Even as the train pulled out she couldn't stop the strange sense of panic that threatened to overwhelm her. It simply intensified to the point were she thought she was going to be sick. As soon as her stop came she was off like a shot heading straight for Anansi. But when she reached the spot, her stomach went wild, making her turn to retch by a bush; the only thing there was an empty clearing. Anansi was gone. 

_'Damn you. Damn you.'_ She gritted her teeth hard as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand; she was getting back her Gundam no matter what the pain or the cost. 

~*~

A pair of eyes gleamed from the dark shadows. Two soldiers came by talking quietly between themselves; the eyes disappeared until they walked around the corner. Slowly, peering around to check the coast, Jess detached herself from the wall before moving down the hall silently looking for a computer. 

_'Jackpot.'_ Entering a room, she saw a row lining the far wall. A few minutes later the monitor casted a soft artificial glow, the tapping of fingers against keys echoing around the room. _'There, hangar fifteen; that's halfway across the bloody compound. They'll pay for taking Anansi from me.'_ Shutting down the computer, she opened the door, stealing out silently and quickly, heading for outside. Using the trucks as over, she began making her way across, avoiding the guards as they came. She had almost reached her goal when some soldiers came out, heading for her cover. _'Shit...this is not good. Not good at all. Please let them just be having a smoke. Just a smoke and then go back inside...please...please...please!!'_ she edged as close as her cover could allow to see the soldiers without being seen. 

"Man...they're going to be here for awhile." she muttered under her breath as the people settled around the car. Moving with as little noise as possible, she crawled underneath the car, not wanting to be caught if someone happened to come around her side. _'The only good thing here is that I can hear them but they don't know I'm here. Come on; talk and give me information.'_ She moved closer to the voice to hear better. 

"Yeah...I needed that." the voice was followed by the sound of a person exhaling. "Just standing there looking at that hideous suit is enough to drive me nuts. How someone can pilot that Gundam, I have no idea." 

_'Hideous!! If I wasn't under this truck...'_ a fist clenched tightly. _'Hideous...ha; probably better than his ugly mug.'_ She shifted her body, thoroughly disgruntled at the speaker. 

"Who gives a damn about the colours? Did you see the parameters for that thing? It's dangerous. A good thing Lara found it and brought it in." 

'I knew she was responsible. I knew it. Explains the look on her face. Nice to see she much hasn't changed much; still can't believe she tried to set me up with that guy.' Making a slight face at the memory, she continued to listen. 

"Why? What's so dangerous about it?" came a different voice. 

"That suit....it's not normal I tell you....almost like it had a mind of its own. Plus the system is something I've never seen before...it looks as if it can enhance abilities greatly...the function just isn't turned on. I'm amazed that the pilot hasn't destroyed OZ already single-handedly. They have the capability to do it." 

"You're kidding...right?" but even the tone in the voice said that they believed the words. 

"Keep dreaming. That's why they've put such tight security around it; only us and mechanics. They don't want to take any chances." 

'Shit...this is just what I needed. This isn't going to be easy.' Her mind was already buzzing with plans and ideas to get in and out in one piece. 

"Man...can't they give us more time for a smoke?" a voice complained. 

Resting her head against the ground, she saw more boots approaching, making the other ones stand up. 

"All right. Break is over. Get back to your posts." 

"Yes Ma'am." 

Peering out as much as she dared she was greeted by the sight of white stockinged legs. Right behind was Lara's amused face looking right at her. She pulled back immediately, hand going for her gun; she would be caught for sure now. 

"Colonel Une...you should be going now if you're to reach the conference in time." came Lara's soft voice. 

Boots crunched against gravel as Colonel Une walked to the truck and got in. "I trust that you can handle things here on your own?" 

"Yes Ma'am." Lara's voice said the salute obvious. 

Jess looked around as the engine started up. _'Looks like I'm going for a ride.'_ She took hold of the bottom and gripped it tightly, pulling herself off of the ground. The truck started with a rumble before it moved forward, leaving the base. Waiting for the right time, Jess simply detached herself, letting the truck drive off as she rolled to the side. 

"Great now I get to go back." she muttered, picking herself up and dusting off the dirt. "I get to walk all the way back." she didn't bother with Lara's silence regarding her; she had bigger fish to fry, so to speak. 

Another twenty minutes later, she was slinking around the barbed wire fence heading for hangar fifteen; it was just across the compound. Anansi was so close yet still so far. _'Hang on. I'm not going to let them slice you apart; I'll get you out of there yet.'_ Waiting until the coast was clear, she went to the back of a building and took out her small wire cutters, easily cutting through the link fence and slipping in through the metal. Pressing herself close to the wall she waited, moving closer and closer to the hangar. _'Man...I hate this part.'_ She watched as the mechanic drew closer and closer to her spot. Just as he was close enough, she grabbed him, pulling him into the shadows and swiftly knocking him out cold before he could make a sound. Quickly she pulled on the coveralls and took the toolbox, heading right for fifteen. The whole hangar was filled with the sounds of hammering as other mobile suits were repaired; and there at the end like a jewel was Anansi, gleaming pristinely in the lights. _'Just hang on for a few more minutes and I'll have you out of her my friend.'_4 Blending in, she started making her way to the end of the hangar. 

"Hey you! You there with the dark hair!!" 

The voice made her freeze for a split second before she turned around, an innocent look on her face. "Who me?" 

"Yes you." the armed soldier ran up to her. "Did you sign in?" 

"Yes. In the log right?" she pointed to the wall. "The one there right?" she could only hope her bluff worked long enough to buy her time. 

"I haven't seen you here before." the eyes narrowed suspiciously. 

"I was just transferred here to look after the suit there." she pointed to Anansi. 

"Under who's orders?" 

"Lieutenant Lara Barrask." she paused as if thinking. "The Lieutenant and Colonel Une had a long talk with me and they said that I wasn't going to be disturbed in any matter so I could get to work immediately." she gave the soldier a look. "So why are you harassing me? I know security is supposed to be tight but come on..." 

"Still...wait here while I check your story." the soldier said, calling over another. "Watch her; if she makes a move towards the Gundam, detain her; with force if necessary." 

Jess watched as the man left abruptly, leaving her with a stern faced sentry. _'Wonderful......how long before the fireworks start? Wait for it Jess...wait for it...'_ Patient and preparing herself, she bided her time waiting out the seemingly long minutes. Then the hangar door opened and it didn't take much to see the company of guards following in the one who left before. _'Here we go.'_

"Excuse me, Sir?" she asked sweetly, making the sentry turn; he was greeted by a toolbox smashing into his face. 

"You!! Stop!!" the soldiers were running towards her now, guns ready. 

Dropping the blunt metal box, she ran towards her Gundam, shoving people aside as she went; not that she had time to apologize like she normally would. Then the gunshots came, making her duck as she ran. Anansi's cockpit door opened as she drew closer, making her redouble her efforts. 

"Fuck!!" she hissed as a bullet went searing into her arm; she felt it hit bone. 

Still she didn't stop as she made it to her Gundam, climbing up quickly amidst gunshots. 

"Jeez!!" another one had sliced into her lower leg; this should be very interesting...her trying to get out with these lovely 'parting gifts'. 

The cockpit door closed, barring out the injurious projectiles. The monitors came to life now, as she took hold of the throttles after buckling herself in. _'Now let's get you out of here shall we? Don't think you like it any more than me, do you my friend?'_ She started making the suit move forward, blinding white hot pain lancing down her arm and up her leg; but she still moved, leaving a small trail of destruction behind her. Then came the mobile suits after her. 

"Oh no you don't; over my dead body." she snarled, turning on them, while whipping out her weapons. 

Barbed pikes flared up in the night, long and imposing; she wasted no time spearing two suits through the middle and ripping upwards. More came after her, and one by one they met their end until she was surrounded by a sea of mecha parts. _'God......'_ She still had a long way to go before she could even think of tending her wounds, let alone rest. Slowly she walked off, the night enveloping her and Anansi. _'Why?'_

~*~


	6. Six

_**Torment of Paradise**_

Chapter 6

~*~

Rubbing his eyes wearily, Quatre looked back to the computer screen, looking over the information Heero had sent to him. "Thought he would have cut out all of this. I only wanted to know if the pilot was coming here; not their entire background." 

But he was sort of glad for all of it; since the person was coming here, the more they had on him the better. The report was thorough; name, age, birthplace, background, family, even blood type. Leaving off from the keyboard, he simply looked at the screen before shutting down the computer. He had had enough for the day. Just as he rose from his seat, the computer went back on again. 

_'Allah...'_ he sat back down as instructor H's face appeared with a smile. "Hello H. How are you doing?" 

"I'm well. I'm sorry if I disturbed you; you look very tired." 

"I'm fine. Just keeping track of things." he stifled a yawn. "Do I have another mission... finally?" 

"Yes...not much. Simply destroy the base approximately eighty miles due west from where you are; they're developing something new and we're not too sure what it is...or will be." 

"All right; eighty miles due west right?" 

"Yes. Maybe you should get some sleep first Quatre. You really do look tired. How long were you keeping track of things?" 

"I lost track of time. I started around five in the afternoon." 

"And it's now three in the morning. Get some rest Quatre." 

"I will...don't worry. I may as well get this mission done and over with. Good bye H." 

"Bye Quatre." the screen went dark again. 

Yawning loudly now he got up and left the room, making his way down to the kitchen to find something to eat. A few minutes later he sat down at the table with a cup of tea and a small sandwich. He didn't really feel hungry, but he nibbled at the sandwich and sipped his tea; he had felt a bit off lately. Maybe he had been doing far too much for his own good...it seemed that he was now suffering from insomnia; he hadn't really gotten a decent night's sleep in awhile now. Leaving the uneaten food at the table, he went down to the underground hangar, seeing half of the Maganacs up playing cards. 

"Hey! Master Quatre; can't sleep again?" 

He smiled a bit. "No Abdul. I'm feeling a bit restless, that's all. What are you guys playing?" he walked over, curious. 

"Poker. Want in? We'll be nice." 

"Yeah sure you will Abdul. You're cleaning us out nicely." 

Abdul glared at his friend good-naturedly from over his shades. "That's because you're a terrible player. Master Quatre should learn from one of us who knows what he's doing." 

"It's al right Abdul. I have a mission to do. When I get back, I'm going to try and get some sleep." 

"You have a mission? You're leaving now? At three a.m.?" Abdul looked at him. "Are you sure you're OK? Normally you'd be fast asleep..." 

"I'm fine Abdul. The sooner we get this done and over with the sooner I can try to sleep." 

"All right then. Come on guys; we'll accompany Master Quatre. At least we know he's not on a date again." Abdul grinned. 

"It wasn't a date. We just went to the mall and saw a movie. That's it Abdul; she's my friend." 

"And the only other sane one among the other pilots according to Rashid; she doesn't have suicidal tendencies...doesn't go around calling herself death...she talks a lot...and she's not screaming something about injustice every five seconds. No offense to the others, but they could take some pointers from Jess in some respects." 

"At least you like her then." he chuckled. "Come on I want to get back before six at least." 

Still chuckling to himself he walked down to Sandrock, getting into the cockpit. As the door closed and the monitors came to life, he sighed heavily; he had always hated this. 

~*~

Carefully, Quatre peered over the tops of the sand dunes. "You take half and circle around from the back Abdul. The other half will come with me and hit the front." 

"Are you sure Master Quatre?" Abdul looked concerned. "I don't think you should be in a frontal assault." 

"Then that means you'll move faster when you guys are supposed to come in then, won't you?" 

Abdul grumbled a bit before moving off, half of the company behind him. Shaking his head, he looked back to the base; all the normal activity for early morning was going on, the few sentries moving around, small flecks on the monitor. _'Here we go.'_ Rising, he started forwards, the other Maganacs behind him. A few hundred meters left and they charged, causing mass scurrying around the base. Crashing in, they started destroying the main buildings as well as the nearby hangars. Then mobile suits started streaming in from the other end. Quatre and the other Maganacs simply stood there waiting until they drew closer. 

"Now!!" he called out over the radio. 

The left flank of the suits was smashed as the rest of the Maganacs ploughed into them, guns firing. The battle frenzied as each was doing their best to defeat the other. It was going well for them until a blip on Quatre's monitor made him look. 

"They've called in reinforcements!!" Abdul said beating him to the punch. "Fall back!! Protect Master Quatre!! Call Rashid!! Get him here!!" 

"Guys, they're behind us as well!!" Quatre said seeing another blip appear on his screen that made him turn around to see the Leos lining the dune top. "They have us trapped." 

Slowly the ring of mechas tightened around Quatre and the Maganacs until they were sure they were facing their deaths. 

"We're giving you one chance to surrender here. Take it or leave it." came the arrogant words over the radio. "One chance." 

Quatre was about to respond when a single blue streak flew across the screen before a mobile suit exploded, making all the others turn. The Maganacs took the opportunity, storming into the circle of suits with fury. Even as he entered the fray he saw flashes of another suit, but it moved far too fast to see it properly, much less identify it. Finally all the OZ suits lay in pieces, Quatre and the Maganacs triumphant. 

"Who's that?" Abdul's puzzled voice came over the radio. "Never seen that suit before." 

"Neither have I Abdul." he said softly, looking at the kneeling suit carefully. "I want to talk to this person." 

"Master Quatre...I don't think that's such a good idea. I mean...what if they attack you?" 

"Abdul if they were going to attack they would have done it already. Plus I don't think they would have helped us, do you?" 

"Still I don't like it. You're far too nice for your own good sometimes you know. Go ahead." 

Quatre opened the door, walking out slowly; he could see the Maganacs training their guns on the unknown suit. "If you can hear me, please come out. I want to talk to you." 

Silence greeted him as he stood on the door. Then he heard the faint noise of a cockpit door opening. He could barely see the figure that fell out into the sand, not moving at all. 

"Abdul...I think they're hurt." he said, taking the rope down. "I'm going to go see." 

He didn't bother with Abdul's protestation as his feet hit the slippery sand and started across. The figure didn't stir once when he called as he approached, simply lying there. _'They must be badly hurt.'_ He picked up his pace hurrying over. _'Allah no...' _He broke into a run as he recognized the prone figure. By now the Maganacs could see something was wrong and some of them left their suits and started coming over. 

"Jess! Jess!" he picked her up, patting her face. "Can you hear me? Jess!!" 

No response; she simply laid there in his arms. _'She's burning up.'_ His hands felt scorched almost with the heat coming off of her face. 

"What's wrong Master Quatre?" Abdul asked walking up. "Who is it?" 

"It's Jess. She's really sick Abdul. Feel her forehead." 

"Sweet merciful Allah!" he jerked his hand back a second after touching Jess' skin. "She's still alive?!" 

'I hope so.' "Jess...Jess..." he patted her face a bit harder. "Jess, answer me..." 

"Mama...I'm so sorry. Gomen nasai. Gomen nasai..." the whisper was barely heard before she fell silent again. 

"Come on." Abdul bent down and picked up Jess. "We'll get her looked after Master Quatre. Don't worry." 

Quatre looked as Abdul took her off, heading for his suit; the Maganacs suits were a bit roomier and would make it easier to carry Jess back. Shaking off the slight daze that came over him he got back into Sandrock, following the Maganacs back. _'What happened to you Jess?'_

~*~

Almost nervously, Quatre waited outside the room in a chair, hands clenching and unclenching. _'What could be taking so long? Iria's a good doctor. What if something went wrong? No no, that couldn't happen.'_ Clenching and unclenching, his knuckles started to pop from the strain. From time to time he would look up at the door before looking back down at his hands, trying to quell the worry inside...not that it was working much. 

"Quatre..." 

He stood up seeing Iria walk out of the bedroom. "How is she?" 

"She's fine now. It's a good thing you guys found her when you did. And even luckier that I was able to come down so quickly. She would have died if she'd gone any longer with out medical attention." 

Quatre breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you Iria; I owe you for this one." 

"Think nothing of it little brother. Do you know what happened to her anyways? She wasn't in very good shape. Bullet wounds, fever, exhaustion, fractured humerus and femur......is she another pilot?" 

"Yes." he paused. "I probably should have told you that before." 

"You were worried; people tend to forget things when they're worried about family or friends." she smiled gently at him. "Just make sure she gets rest and takes it easy...though I think that last one might be impossible for a person like her." 

"You have no idea." he laughed, relieved. 

"Go and see her Quatre; I've never seen you so worried over someone before. Then I want you to get some sleep all right? You look like you haven't gotten much rest yourself." 

"I will Iria. Is she asleep now?" 

"Yes. But I got the feeling that you'd still want to see her. Go on...there's a chair in there if you want to have a seat." 

"Thank you Iria, again. I really don't know what I would have done if you didn't-" 

"Quatre...go and see her." she chuckled pushing him towards the slightly open door. 

"But only for five...ten minutes the most OK?" 

He nodded his head before entering the dim room. Light came from the single bedside lamp showing the still figure in the bed. Going to the seat he sat down looking at her serene features. The dirt was mostly gone now, showing the gentle curves of her cheekbones as well as the long lashes that rested there. Her chest barely moved beneath the purple blanket, the white bandage around her upper arm standing out. Reaching forward, he hesitantly smoothed back the bangs that rested against her brow; it didn't feel as hot now. His hand rested for a moment before he pulled it back; her hair had felt so soft beneath his palm. Sitting there he gazed at her wondering what she had gone through to reach Arabia in such a state. His eyelids grew heavier and heavier; he never even realized when there was only blissful darkness. 

~*~

Blue and black greeted his eyes as he looked up to see the suit beside his. "So this is Anansi." he murmured. 

"Pardon Master Quatre?" Rashid looked at him. "Did you say something?" 

"No...how bad are the damages to her suit?" 

Rashid looked at him curiously before he spoke. "Nothing extremely serious...but she really shouldn't have made it here; the suit's been through hell and back; that battle you guys got into yesterday didn't help much either." 

"I thought so." he paused, looking at the mass of gundanium. "Do you think that we can get it fixed soon?" 

"Yes. That shouldn't be problem. Have you checked on your friend?" 

"She's still sleeping Rashid; Iria gave her a drug to help her sleep better before she left; it won't wear off for at least another hour or so." 

"Very well then. We'll get started now." Rashid said before walking off. "Master Quatre, can I help you with anything else?" he asked seeing Quatre fall in step beside him. 

"I'm going to help." he said simply. "I don't have anything else to do with my time really." 

"Not even play your violin?" 

"I did that an hour ago. As much as I love it, if you play too much, you may get tired of it." 

Rashid chuckled. "Very well then. We would be very disappointed if you became bored of playing your violin." 

Quatre smiled back as the headed for Jess' suit. He had also wanted to get a better look at the suit that she piloted; it seemed so different from theirs; smaller, sleeker...and that air about it...dangerous; a sharp contrast to the Jess he knew. Before long he was running a systems check to see what need repairs; the list wasn't that long, but it would take a good portion of the day to complete it. 

"Some wires fried, a small system malfunction..." he murmured looking at the computer screen, taking mental inventory of the tasks. 

Before long, he was working with the rest of the Maganacs in fixing Jess' suit. The hours seemed to melt into one another until he was standing with everyone else looking proudly at their work. 

_'It's like it's brand new.'_ He looked at Anansi again, admiring the gleaming paint that had been smeared with dirt and mud. Beside Sandrock it looked so small like it wasn't capable of much...but he knew better. _'Wouldn't want to fight her when she's in that.'_ He stifled a small yawn; the work had tired him out more than he thought. 

"I'm going to go and take a nap guys." he yawned again. "I'll see you all later." 

He left amidst a murmur of chuckles and _'Finally, he's himself again'_. Slowly he made his way up to his room, ready to collapse. As he sank into the soft covers, the faint sound of music reached his ears. Tired, he got up and headed down the hall to see where it was coming from. It was beautiful really, smooth and flowing to hear and probably a wonder to play. The notes floated down the hall as he came but just as he put his hand on the door, it ended with a misplayed note. Puzzled he opened the door to see Jess seated at the piano, cradling her arm with tears running down her face. 

"Jess?" he asked hesitantly waking into the room. 

"Quatre!" she looked up startled as she wiped away her tears hastily. "So you are here...I wasn't dreaming then." 

"Dreaming what?" 

"I don't know...I'm still not too sure. How did I get here? How did you find me?" 

"I think the question is how you found us. We weren't expecting you to show up. We didn't even know it was you at first." he paused. How did you even get so sick?" her form looked a bit too thin from where he was standing. 

"Bullet wounds I guess. I was trying to make it here in one piece." she paused. "Looks like I succeeded." 

"But you almost didn't. Jess you could have died. Why didn't you treat your wounds immediately?" 

"If you were being hunted by Oz, wouldn't you run for your life even if you were injured? I couldn't hide anywhere; they were too through. So I headed here." 

"But still..." he yawned. "you would have died if Iria hadn't made it here in time..." he trailed off, head nodding. 

"Quatre...Quatre..." 

"Hrm?" he opened his eyes again at the sound of her insistent voice. "Yes Jess?" 

"I can't believe you sometimes. Here you are trying to get mad at me and you're falling asleep standing up." she chuckled rising from her seat and approaching him. "Come on; sleepy time for you." 

He could only give half worded protests as she steered him down the hall, saying that she should be more careful in the future and to not act or do reckless things anymore. He didn't even know if she steered him to the right bedroom, but as soon as he hit a bed he was out like a light. He never even felt the blanket being settled over him gently. 

~*~

With a yawn, Quatre opened his eyes to see the sun shining in merrily, showing off the vast expanse of desert outside. He rose, feeling hungry beyond words making him head down to the kitchen. 

"Master Quatre, could you like dinner now?" 

Looking up he saw the butler coming down the hall. "Yes please. Just some rice and vegetables if you don't mind." He paused. "Have you seen a girl anywhere around here? Dark hair, bandaged arm..." 

"Yes Sir. She ate already I believe. Last that I saw of her, she was heading to the library." 

"Thank you." he said hurrying off in the direction of the opposite side of the house. 

Walking into the library, he looked around to see an empty room. With a heavy sigh, he went up to the window, looking down; there was Jess along with the Maganacs, playing what looked like cards. Shaking his head he headed down, hearing the commotion as he approached. 

"What do you have Abdul?" came her voice. 

"Four of a kind." moving into the crowd he saw Abdul lay down the cards to a sharp drawn breath from the spectators. "In clubs might I add. What did you get?" 

Her face flushed as she laid down her cards. "I really didn't cheat at all. I haven't played poker in the longest time. Not in twelve years at least." 

"You got a royal flush in spades. The odds of that are one in a million." Abdul grinned at her. "If you have that kind of luck, I'm glad you're on our side!" 

This was met by a general amount of laughter going around the crowd. Even Jess laughed as she scooped up the cards and looked around smiling, noticing him as her eyes rested on him. 

"Hi Quatre. Did you have a good rest?" 

All the Maganacs looked at him; they were starting top wonder when Master Quatre would wake up. He just kind of looked at Jess, silent 

"Did you have a good rest Master Quatre?" Rashid asked again quietly. 

"Yes, I did thank you." he said snapping out of it. "How long was I asleep for? Eight hours?" 

"Try a day and a half Quatre." Jess smiled up at him. "You were as tired as me, huh?" 

"A bit I guess. Do you mind if I talk to you for a minute Jess?" 

"No not at all...besides Abdul here has learned his lesson I would imagine..." she looked around innocently causing more laughter. 

"Ah...get on out of here two..." he waved them away with his hand. "I seem to need more practice..." 

"So...what's so important? Want to finish yelling at me for that night?" she chuckled. 

"Well...I can see why you felt like you had to wait to get attention for your wounds...but Allah I was so worried when we found you like that. Please promise me that you won't do anything like that again." 

"Quatre...I can't promise you anything...I'm a Gundam pilot, remember? We're Gundam pilots; promises are almost like dreams to us; always something fragile and not to be broken lightly...I don't want to break any promise I make to you Quatre." she paused before speaking quietly "I don't like to break promises to people I care about." 

"Jess-" 

"So does that answer your question? I won't promise, but I'll do my best to not get hurt if that will make you feel better...OK Quatre?" 

"All right then Jess." he murmured with a slight pause. "Will you ever let me finish a sentence one day?" 

She looked at him before breaking in to a silly smile. "I'm so sorry. I seem to have that as a bad habit. What were you going to say?" 

"No it's nothing really..." 

"Quatre...what was it?" 

"I was going to ask you if you wanted to join me for dinner. Would you like to?" he looked at her once more. 

"Sure." she smiled, eyes sparkled brightly. "I could use something to eat after a game like that one back there. What's on the menu?" 

"Why don't we go and see?" he smiled back offering his arm to her good one. 

"By all means." she chuckled as they headed inside. 

Quatre smiled and laughed even more as they went to the dining room, making small conversation. He still couldn't explain the almost wild sense of panic that washed over him seeing her lying there unmoving in the sand; it went far beyond anything he had known. But he felt it all melt away looking into her eyes; those obsidian depths seemed to soothe his soul somehow. 

~*~


	7. Seven

_**Torment of Paradise**_

Chapter 6

~*~

Rubbing his eyes wearily, Quatre looked back to the computer screen, looking over the information Heero had sent to him. "Thought he would have cut out all of this. I only wanted to know if the pilot was coming here; not their entire background." 

But he was sort of glad for all of it; since the person was coming here, the more they had on him the better. The report was thorough; name, age, birthplace, background, family, even blood type. Leaving off from the keyboard, he simply looked at the screen before shutting down the computer. He had had enough for the day. Just as he rose from his seat, the computer went back on again. 

_'Allah...'_ he sat back down as instructor H's face appeared with a smile. "Hello H. How are you doing?" 

"I'm well. I'm sorry if I disturbed you; you look very tired." 

"I'm fine. Just keeping track of things." he stifled a yawn. "Do I have another mission... finally?" 

"Yes...not much. Simply destroy the base approximately eighty miles due west from where you are; they're developing something new and we're not too sure what it is...or will be." 

"All right; eighty miles due west right?" 

"Yes. Maybe you should get some sleep first Quatre. You really do look tired. How long were you keeping track of things?" 

"I lost track of time. I started around five in the afternoon." 

"And it's now three in the morning. Get some rest Quatre." 

"I will...don't worry. I may as well get this mission done and over with. Good bye H." 

"Bye Quatre." the screen went dark again. 

Yawning loudly now he got up and left the room, making his way down to the kitchen to find something to eat. A few minutes later he sat down at the table with a cup of tea and a small sandwich. He didn't really feel hungry, but he nibbled at the sandwich and sipped his tea; he had felt a bit off lately. Maybe he had been doing far too much for his own good...it seemed that he was now suffering from insomnia; he hadn't really gotten a decent night's sleep in awhile now. Leaving the uneaten food at the table, he went down to the underground hangar, seeing half of the Maganacs up playing cards. 

"Hey! Master Quatre; can't sleep again?" 

He smiled a bit. "No Abdul. I'm feeling a bit restless, that's all. What are you guys playing?" he walked over, curious. 

"Poker. Want in? We'll be nice." 

"Yeah sure you will Abdul. You're cleaning us out nicely." 

Abdul glared at his friend good-naturedly from over his shades. "That's because you're a terrible player. Master Quatre should learn from one of us who knows what he's doing." 

"It's al right Abdul. I have a mission to do. When I get back, I'm going to try and get some sleep." 

"You have a mission? You're leaving now? At three a.m.?" Abdul looked at him. "Are you sure you're OK? Normally you'd be fast asleep..." 

"I'm fine Abdul. The sooner we get this done and over with the sooner I can try to sleep." 

"All right then. Come on guys; we'll accompany Master Quatre. At least we know he's not on a date again." Abdul grinned. 

"It wasn't a date. We just went to the mall and saw a movie. That's it Abdul; she's my friend." 

"And the only other sane one among the other pilots according to Rashid; she doesn't have suicidal tendencies...doesn't go around calling herself death...she talks a lot...and she's not screaming something about injustice every five seconds. No offense to the others, but they could take some pointers from Jess in some respects." 

"At least you like her then." he chuckled. "Come on I want to get back before six at least." 

Still chuckling to himself he walked down to Sandrock, getting into the cockpit. As the door closed and the monitors came to life, he sighed heavily; he had always hated this. 

~*~

Carefully, Quatre peered over the tops of the sand dunes. "You take half and circle around from the back Abdul. The other half will come with me and hit the front." 

"Are you sure Master Quatre?" Abdul looked concerned. "I don't think you should be in a frontal assault." 

"Then that means you'll move faster when you guys are supposed to come in then, won't you?" 

Abdul grumbled a bit before moving off, half of the company behind him. Shaking his head, he looked back to the base; all the normal activity for early morning was going on, the few sentries moving around, small flecks on the monitor. _'Here we go.'_ Rising, he started forwards, the other Maganacs behind him. A few hundred meters left and they charged, causing mass scurrying around the base. Crashing in, they started destroying the main buildings as well as the nearby hangars. Then mobile suits started streaming in from the other end. Quatre and the other Maganacs simply stood there waiting until they drew closer. 

"Now!!" he called out over the radio. 

The left flank of the suits was smashed as the rest of the Maganacs ploughed into them, guns firing. The battle frenzied as each was doing their best to defeat the other. It was going well for them until a blip on Quatre's monitor made him look. 

"They've called in reinforcements!!" Abdul said beating him to the punch. "Fall back!! Protect Master Quatre!! Call Rashid!! Get him here!!" 

"Guys, they're behind us as well!!" Quatre said seeing another blip appear on his screen that made him turn around to see the Leos lining the dune top. "They have us trapped." 

Slowly the ring of mechas tightened around Quatre and the Maganacs until they were sure they were facing their deaths. 

"We're giving you one chance to surrender here. Take it or leave it." came the arrogant words over the radio. "One chance." 

Quatre was about to respond when a single blue streak flew across the screen before a mobile suit exploded, making all the others turn. The Maganacs took the opportunity, storming into the circle of suits with fury. Even as he entered the fray he saw flashes of another suit, but it moved far too fast to see it properly, much less identify it. Finally all the OZ suits lay in pieces, Quatre and the Maganacs triumphant. 

"Who's that?" Abdul's puzzled voice came over the radio. "Never seen that suit before." 

"Neither have I Abdul." he said softly, looking at the kneeling suit carefully. "I want to talk to this person." 

"Master Quatre...I don't think that's such a good idea. I mean...what if they attack you?" 

"Abdul if they were going to attack they would have done it already. Plus I don't think they would have helped us, do you?" 

"Still I don't like it. You're far too nice for your own good sometimes you know. Go ahead." 

Quatre opened the door, walking out slowly; he could see the Maganacs training their guns on the unknown suit. "If you can hear me, please come out. I want to talk to you." 

Silence greeted him as he stood on the door. Then he heard the faint noise of a cockpit door opening. He could barely see the figure that fell out into the sand, not moving at all. 

"Abdul...I think they're hurt." he said, taking the rope down. "I'm going to go see." 

He didn't bother with Abdul's protestation as his feet hit the slippery sand and started across. The figure didn't stir once when he called as he approached, simply lying there. _'They must be badly hurt.'_ He picked up his pace hurrying over. _'Allah no...' _He broke into a run as he recognized the prone figure. By now the Maganacs could see something was wrong and some of them left their suits and started coming over. 

"Jess! Jess!" he picked her up, patting her face. "Can you hear me? Jess!!" 

No response; she simply laid there in his arms. _'She's burning up.'_ His hands felt scorched almost with the heat coming off of her face. 

"What's wrong Master Quatre?" Abdul asked walking up. "Who is it?" 

"It's Jess. She's really sick Abdul. Feel her forehead." 

"Sweet merciful Allah!" he jerked his hand back a second after touching Jess' skin. "She's still alive?!" 

'I hope so.' "Jess...Jess..." he patted her face a bit harder. "Jess, answer me..." 

"Mama...I'm so sorry. Gomen nasai. Gomen nasai..." the whisper was barely heard before she fell silent again. 

"Come on." Abdul bent down and picked up Jess. "We'll get her looked after Master Quatre. Don't worry." 

Quatre looked as Abdul took her off, heading for his suit; the Maganacs suits were a bit roomier and would make it easier to carry Jess back. Shaking off the slight daze that came over him he got back into Sandrock, following the Maganacs back. _'What happened to you Jess?'_

~*~

Almost nervously, Quatre waited outside the room in a chair, hands clenching and unclenching. _'What could be taking so long? Iria's a good doctor. What if something went wrong? No no, that couldn't happen.'_ Clenching and unclenching, his knuckles started to pop from the strain. From time to time he would look up at the door before looking back down at his hands, trying to quell the worry inside...not that it was working much. 

"Quatre..." 

He stood up seeing Iria walk out of the bedroom. "How is she?" 

"She's fine now. It's a good thing you guys found her when you did. And even luckier that I was able to come down so quickly. She would have died if she'd gone any longer with out medical attention." 

Quatre breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you Iria; I owe you for this one." 

"Think nothing of it little brother. Do you know what happened to her anyways? She wasn't in very good shape. Bullet wounds, fever, exhaustion, fractured humerus and femur......is she another pilot?" 

"Yes." he paused. "I probably should have told you that before." 

"You were worried; people tend to forget things when they're worried about family or friends." she smiled gently at him. "Just make sure she gets rest and takes it easy...though I think that last one might be impossible for a person like her." 

"You have no idea." he laughed, relieved. 

"Go and see her Quatre; I've never seen you so worried over someone before. Then I want you to get some sleep all right? You look like you haven't gotten much rest yourself." 

"I will Iria. Is she asleep now?" 

"Yes. But I got the feeling that you'd still want to see her. Go on...there's a chair in there if you want to have a seat." 

"Thank you Iria, again. I really don't know what I would have done if you didn't-" 

"Quatre...go and see her." she chuckled pushing him towards the slightly open door. 

"But only for five...ten minutes the most OK?" 

He nodded his head before entering the dim room. Light came from the single bedside lamp showing the still figure in the bed. Going to the seat he sat down looking at her serene features. The dirt was mostly gone now, showing the gentle curves of her cheekbones as well as the long lashes that rested there. Her chest barely moved beneath the purple blanket, the white bandage around her upper arm standing out. Reaching forward, he hesitantly smoothed back the bangs that rested against her brow; it didn't feel as hot now. His hand rested for a moment before he pulled it back; her hair had felt so soft beneath his palm. Sitting there he gazed at her wondering what she had gone through to reach Arabia in such a state. His eyelids grew heavier and heavier; he never even realized when there was only blissful darkness. 

~*~

Blue and black greeted his eyes as he looked up to see the suit beside his. "So this is Anansi." he murmured. 

"Pardon Master Quatre?" Rashid looked at him. "Did you say something?" 

"No...how bad are the damages to her suit?" 

Rashid looked at him curiously before he spoke. "Nothing extremely serious...but she really shouldn't have made it here; the suit's been through hell and back; that battle you guys got into yesterday didn't help much either." 

"I thought so." he paused, looking at the mass of gundanium. "Do you think that we can get it fixed soon?" 

"Yes. That shouldn't be problem. Have you checked on your friend?" 

"She's still sleeping Rashid; Iria gave her a drug to help her sleep better before she left; it won't wear off for at least another hour or so." 

"Very well then. We'll get started now." Rashid said before walking off. "Master Quatre, can I help you with anything else?" he asked seeing Quatre fall in step beside him. 

"I'm going to help." he said simply. "I don't have anything else to do with my time really." 

"Not even play your violin?" 

"I did that an hour ago. As much as I love it, if you play too much, you may get tired of it." 

Rashid chuckled. "Very well then. We would be very disappointed if you became bored of playing your violin." 

Quatre smiled back as the headed for Jess' suit. He had also wanted to get a better look at the suit that she piloted; it seemed so different from theirs; smaller, sleeker...and that air about it...dangerous; a sharp contrast to the Jess he knew. Before long he was running a systems check to see what need repairs; the list wasn't that long, but it would take a good portion of the day to complete it. 

"Some wires fried, a small system malfunction..." he murmured looking at the computer screen, taking mental inventory of the tasks. 

Before long, he was working with the rest of the Maganacs in fixing Jess' suit. The hours seemed to melt into one another until he was standing with everyone else looking proudly at their work. 

_'It's like it's brand new.'_ He looked at Anansi again, admiring the gleaming paint that had been smeared with dirt and mud. Beside Sandrock it looked so small like it wasn't capable of much...but he knew better. _'Wouldn't want to fight her when she's in that.'_ He stifled a small yawn; the work had tired him out more than he thought. 

"I'm going to go and take a nap guys." he yawned again. "I'll see you all later." 

He left amidst a murmur of chuckles and _'Finally, he's himself again'_. Slowly he made his way up to his room, ready to collapse. As he sank into the soft covers, the faint sound of music reached his ears. Tired, he got up and headed down the hall to see where it was coming from. It was beautiful really, smooth and flowing to hear and probably a wonder to play. The notes floated down the hall as he came but just as he put his hand on the door, it ended with a misplayed note. Puzzled he opened the door to see Jess seated at the piano, cradling her arm with tears running down her face. 

"Jess?" he asked hesitantly waking into the room. 

"Quatre!" she looked up startled as she wiped away her tears hastily. "So you are here...I wasn't dreaming then." 

"Dreaming what?" 

"I don't know...I'm still not too sure. How did I get here? How did you find me?" 

"I think the question is how you found us. We weren't expecting you to show up. We didn't even know it was you at first." he paused. How did you even get so sick?" her form looked a bit too thin from where he was standing. 

"Bullet wounds I guess. I was trying to make it here in one piece." she paused. "Looks like I succeeded." 

"But you almost didn't. Jess you could have died. Why didn't you treat your wounds immediately?" 

"If you were being hunted by Oz, wouldn't you run for your life even if you were injured? I couldn't hide anywhere; they were too through. So I headed here." 

"But still..." he yawned. "you would have died if Iria hadn't made it here in time..." he trailed off, head nodding. 

"Quatre...Quatre..." 

"Hrm?" he opened his eyes again at the sound of her insistent voice. "Yes Jess?" 

"I can't believe you sometimes. Here you are trying to get mad at me and you're falling asleep standing up." she chuckled rising from her seat and approaching him. "Come on; sleepy time for you." 

He could only give half worded protests as she steered him down the hall, saying that she should be more careful in the future and to not act or do reckless things anymore. He didn't even know if she steered him to the right bedroom, but as soon as he hit a bed he was out like a light. He never even felt the blanket being settled over him gently. 

~*~

With a yawn, Quatre opened his eyes to see the sun shining in merrily, showing off the vast expanse of desert outside. He rose, feeling hungry beyond words making him head down to the kitchen. 

"Master Quatre, could you like dinner now?" 

Looking up he saw the butler coming down the hall. "Yes please. Just some rice and vegetables if you don't mind." He paused. "Have you seen a girl anywhere around here? Dark hair, bandaged arm..." 

"Yes Sir. She ate already I believe. Last that I saw of her, she was heading to the library." 

"Thank you." he said hurrying off in the direction of the opposite side of the house. 

Walking into the library, he looked around to see an empty room. With a heavy sigh, he went up to the window, looking down; there was Jess along with the Maganacs, playing what looked like cards. Shaking his head he headed down, hearing the commotion as he approached. 

"What do you have Abdul?" came her voice. 

"Four of a kind." moving into the crowd he saw Abdul lay down the cards to a sharp drawn breath from the spectators. "In clubs might I add. What did you get?" 

Her face flushed as she laid down her cards. "I really didn't cheat at all. I haven't played poker in the longest time. Not in twelve years at least." 

"You got a royal flush in spades. The odds of that are one in a million." Abdul grinned at her. "If you have that kind of luck, I'm glad you're on our side!" 

This was met by a general amount of laughter going around the crowd. Even Jess laughed as she scooped up the cards and looked around smiling, noticing him as her eyes rested on him. 

"Hi Quatre. Did you have a good rest?" 

All the Maganacs looked at him; they were starting top wonder when Master Quatre would wake up. He just kind of looked at Jess, silent 

"Did you have a good rest Master Quatre?" Rashid asked again quietly. 

"Yes, I did thank you." he said snapping out of it. "How long was I asleep for? Eight hours?" 

"Try a day and a half Quatre." Jess smiled up at him. "You were as tired as me, huh?" 

"A bit I guess. Do you mind if I talk to you for a minute Jess?" 

"No not at all...besides Abdul here has learned his lesson I would imagine..." she looked around innocently causing more laughter. 

"Ah...get on out of here two..." he waved them away with his hand. "I seem to need more practice..." 

"So...what's so important? Want to finish yelling at me for that night?" she chuckled. 

"Well...I can see why you felt like you had to wait to get attention for your wounds...but Allah I was so worried when we found you like that. Please promise me that you won't do anything like that again." 

"Quatre...I can't promise you anything...I'm a Gundam pilot, remember? We're Gundam pilots; promises are almost like dreams to us; always something fragile and not to be broken lightly...I don't want to break any promise I make to you Quatre." she paused before speaking quietly "I don't like to break promises to people I care about." 

"Jess-" 

"So does that answer your question? I won't promise, but I'll do my best to not get hurt if that will make you feel better...OK Quatre?" 

"All right then Jess." he murmured with a slight pause. "Will you ever let me finish a sentence one day?" 

She looked at him before breaking in to a silly smile. "I'm so sorry. I seem to have that as a bad habit. What were you going to say?" 

"No it's nothing really..." 

"Quatre...what was it?" 

"I was going to ask you if you wanted to join me for dinner. Would you like to?" he looked at her once more. 

"Sure." she smiled, eyes sparkled brightly. "I could use something to eat after a game like that one back there. What's on the menu?" 

"Why don't we go and see?" he smiled back offering his arm to her good one. 

"By all means." she chuckled as they headed inside. 

Quatre smiled and laughed even more as they went to the dining room, making small conversation. He still couldn't explain the almost wild sense of panic that washed over him seeing her lying there unmoving in the sand; it went far beyond anything he had known. But he felt it all melt away looking into her eyes; those obsidian depths seemed to soothe his soul somehow. 

~*~


	8. Eight

_**Torment of Paradise**_

~*~

Chapter 8

~*~

The sound of bullets whizzed past Quatre's head as he peered around the corner. 

"Well...how many are there?" came Duo's urgent voice. 

"Ten; all armed to the teeth." Quatre looked down at the gun in his hand. "Can't we just ask them to surrender?" 

"OK...we can try that." Duo said a bit sarcastically. "Hey!! Are you guys down there willing to surrender to us?" he screamed down the hallway. As if in an answer more bullets and projectiles went flying. "Well Quatre, looks like we're fighting our way out of this one. Know you don't like that but we gave them a chance." 

"All right Duo." he cocked the gun, looking at him. "Shall we go out with all our guns blazing?" 

"Why not; probably going to die anyways." Duo grinned as he took out a grenade. "I chuck then we run; got it?" 

Quatre nodded as Duo pulled the pin and heaved it down the hallway. A loud explosion rocked the ground and filled the air with cries of wounded soldiers. They dashed out from their corner and took off down the hall, seeking an exit. It didn't take them long to run into another troop of soldiers. 

"They just keep showing up; it'll take us forever to get out at this rate." Quatre said as he fired the gun down the hall. 

"You know...this is a bit ridiculous. Since when had this base decided it wanted to do a decent job of defense? Today of all the bleedin' days!!" Duo muttered as he searched for something in his pocket. 

"Whatever you're trying to find hurry Duo; I'm running out of bullets here!" Quatre said as he continued firing into the coming soldiers. "You could pick up the pace a bit!!" 

"Touchy touchy!! Now who's starting to act and sound like Jess!!" he muttered as he struggled with something. 

Hearing a metallic clink sound, Quatre looked down to see a grenade shaped object. Moving back quickly, he pushed Duo and they started heading down the hall; but not fast enough. Gas escaped from the tiny canister, filling the hallway rapidly. The last thing he remembered was everything going blurry as booted feet on the floor filled his vision; then everything went dark as something hard hit him on the back of the head. 

~*~

"Quatre! Quatre! Can you hear me buddy?" 

"Duo?" he opened his eyes hesitantly, looking around the dark cell. "Where are we?" he asked a bit hoarsely. "What happened?" 

"They shot in knockout gas. We are currently enjoying Oz's hospitality...which by the way stinks!!" he yelled towards the indistinct shape of the door. With a sigh he sat back down. "They were nice enough to club you on the head pretty hard and punch me in the stomach." 

"Maybe that's why my mouth feels like the bottom of a birdie cage." he groaned as he sat up, rubbing his head gingerly with both cuffed hands. "Is there anything to drink?" 

"Yeah; they had pity on us and gave us this dinky little water container. Here, you have it all; I don't need any." 

Quatre groped around almost blindly for the container. "Thanks..." he took a drink. "How long have I been out?" 

"I don't know; bastards took my watch. Jess gave it to me too. I liked that watch man; someone 's gonna pay for that. It even worked for different time zones." 

"Hn." he took another gulp. "You've known Jess for a long time haven't you Duo?" 

"Yeah...we grew up together on L2 for a bit." he paused. "Didn't she ever tell you? She seems to like you more than she cares to admit." 

"You think so? Every time we head towards a serious discussion about her, she has a tendency to cut it off." 

"When she's ready, she'll talk. We went through a lot before she 'lucked' out; don't worry about her." 

"What do you mean 'lucked' out?" 

"Well...she thinks she got lucky that day...but it was really me and a friend who pulled the strings." 

Quatre just shook his head. "I'll just take your word for it." he muttered. "Like she'll ever say anything now." 

Duo simply made a sound and leaned back into the wall resting his hands behind his head. "I'm gonna try to get some shuteye all right. Keep watch and make sure that no one comes in here?" 

"Sure. Not like much is going to-" he stopped as the door opened, a figure entering the room. 

"You two...come with me." the man's voice said in a quiet tone before the silhouette disappeared. 

Reluctantly, they rose walking out of the cell, blinking rapidly in the lights as their eyes adjusted. There weren't many guards posted outside their cell, only two. And right down the hall, Quatre could see the way that they had entered the base. Glancing at Duo, he saw the same look in his eyes; they could make a break for it. 

_'Ready.'_ Duo looked at him. 

_'Set.'_ Quatre's body tensed as he prepared himself to break loose. 

_'G-'_

"All right; in you two go and have a seat." 

Startled they looked up to see an open door in front of them. A cross look flashed across Duo's face before he stomped in noisily. With a sigh Quatre followed; they had been so close. It was a basic interrogation room; a plain grey paint job, a couple of chairs and the metal table . Edgy they sat down in the two chairs, trying to not be nervous; something seemed off already. The door swung open again to admit in a tall man who simply stood there and looked at them with a piercing grey gaze. 

"The one with the braid; take him to another room; I'll talk with him when I'm done with this one." 

"What!? No! I refuse to leave!!" Duo started as two soldiers entered the room and dragged him out kicking and yelling. 

"Finally...silence." the man said as soon as the door closed blocking out Duo's vehement protests. 

Quatre simply looked at he man, not saying anything. There was something about him, an...aura almost, that said he wasn't beyond doing anything to a prisoner of war. It made him even edgier. 

"Now...you're going to be a good little Gundam pilot and tell me everything you know." he said sitting down in the seat opposite Quatre. "For starters...your name would be good." 

Quatre simply looked at the man, silent as a rock. _'Don't talk; no matter what he does to you; don't betray your friends. Don't betray Jess.'_

"I believe I asked you for a name." came the voice again; it had an angry tone to it. 

"How about you start?" he stated. 

"Fine; Colonel Samuel Orton." eyes narrowed. "Now yours." 

"I don't recall giving a guarantee." he murmured quietly. 

"Don't try my patience boy. Your name." Orton snarled. 

Quatre looked at him amazed; never had he heard someone revert to such intense anger so quickly. And he wasn't about to blow his cover like that. "No." he said calmly. 

A hand came flying at his face, striking him so hard that he toppled to the floor in his chair . Lifting his head up he saw a small spot of blood on the floor; his blood. Struggling, he managed to sit up as Orton came around. 

"I suggest," he said grabbing a handful of Quatre's hair and forcing his head up. "that you start talking and tell me the names of your fellow pilots. 

Quatre felt like laughing; perhaps Duo was right about him starting to sound like Jess. "Maybe you didn't hear me the first time." he said, blood trickling down his split lower lip. "I said no." 

A snarl of rage reached Quatre's ears as he felt his face slam into the floor and bounce back up sharply. The floor moved beneath his body as he was yanked back up viciously and smashed back into his chair. A hand fisted tightly into his shirt and pulled him forward. 

"You will talk." 

"Never." he managed. 

Orton's eyes nearly bulged from his head before he managed to get a tenuous grip on his rage. "We have ways to make you talk and-" 

"Why don't you spare me and send me back to my cell while you go and talk to the other one." Quatre said at him feeling his own rage start to stir rapidly. 

A fist went smashing into his face making his head reel back and nearly set the chair over again. As he looked back at Orton, he could feel the blood seeping from his nose. "That's really going to make me talk? Man, are you ever the fool." 

Orton looked about ready to give him another blow yet he let go of his shirt and sank back into his seat. "There's other ways to get you to talk you know." 

"I highly doubt that." he muttered, glaring at the man. 

"Really? We have been taking surveillance of you in the company of a certain lady friend upon information from a lieutenant. One with dark hair...slightly curly...tall...about 5'9' or more... goes by the name of-" 

"Don't you dare lay a hand on her." he growled, shooting the man daggers. 

"And what would a person in your position do to me?" he sneered. 

"I'll kill you." he said in a tight voice as the rage kept building and building inside, making him start to see red quickly. "I'll kill you with my bare hands." 

"I highly doubt that." he patted Quatre's cheek with a mocking look in his eyes. "Besides, a boy like you couldn't do anything to a grown man." 

"Grown? Man? That's a joke. You're probably only 19 at the most. And not a very-" another fist smashed into his face. 

"I am a grown man. I am 21 and you are nothing more than a runt who should be cowering beneath me!!" Orton screamed at him. 

"Well...looks like someone has an insecurity complex there if you ask me." Quatre mocked. 

Orton punched him again, in the eye this time; Quatre lost it. With a yell he flung himself at the man, beating him with his manacled hands for all he was worth. Orton flung him off and Quatre lunged again, responding finally with the same brutality Orton had shown him. He found himself lost in a sea of springing blood and the sound of flesh meeting flesh accompanied with yells. It was for the second time that night when a powerful left jab caught him in the temple that he met the darkness again. 

~*~

Blinking his eyes, Quatre sat up, looking around his solitary cell. "Man does my head kill." he muttered rubbing it. Staggering up, he walked around for a bit trying to clear his head a bit; it was spinning around so fast like everything else in the cell. Eventually he slid down against the wall, feeling like the situation was utterly hopeless; his talk with Colonel Orton earlier on , seemed to affirm that. There was no way that a man like Orton would have anything resembling a shred of pity towards him now; not after that beating he'd given him. 

Rubbing his eyes, he rested his head against the wall. "What the hell came over me?" he murmured, staring away into nothing. "I've never lost it like that before. I have no excuse for my behaviour." 

He still wasn't sure what had happened; it was bad enough that the man was threatening his life so blatantly, but he would be damned if he betrayed his fellow pilots like that, simply because the man had been violent. And violent he had been. Even when he'd fallen unconscious, the last thing he remembered was the man kicking him in the stomach very hard; harder than necessary. 

"I suppose I provoked him in a way." he gritted his teeth, feeling one jiggle a bit. "Great; now I'm losing my teeth. I just had to come on this mission; I knew it would go wrong, I just knew it." 

Before he had set out with Duo, he had this feeling of dread settle in the pit of stomach and he had still gone ahead and left with Duo; and without any of the Maganacs to boot. 

"I'm so in for it when I get back. Rashid is going to chew me out to no end; I deserve that too at this moment. I just wish they'd stop treating me like a little kid; I am growing up after all." he grimaced. "Abdul is going to have a field day too." 

Rising again, he stared pacing around the cell, feeling a bit of anxiety descend; where had they taken Duo? Had he received the same treatment that he had gotten? Would Orton want to 'talk' to him again? If he did, Quatre still wasn't planning on saying anything to him. 

"Allah...I have to get out of here." he muttered, going up to the door and inspecting it carefully. "And not get killed in the process. Jess will yell at me too when she finds out about this." 

Feeling along the door, he went along the crack reaching up as far as he could before hunching over suddenly; stretching with injured ribs wasn't a brilliant idea. More carefully, he went through the cell thoroughly, trying to find any way to escape quickly. 

_'Hello? What's this here?'_ His fingers grazed against a grill, the vents open. Slowly, he felt around it, looking for the corners. Finding them, he pulled on it with a jerk; nothing. Steeling himself, he gave a strong yank, hands flying free and making him sprawl to the floor ungainly with a painful hiss. 

"Found a way." he muttered, standing up and holding his side. "But I'm not yanking on that again. Maybe I have something to unscrew the bolts holding it." 

Carefully he went through his pockets, finding a small thin plastic rectangle. Shaking his head he went to the grill and gave it a try; the screw started to come out. _'Father will not be happy when he sees my security card.'_ He continued until all the screws were loose. Letting the grill down quietly, he crawled in, before pulling the grate in behind him; it should look like there was nothing totally wrong at least. As quietly as he could, he went through the ventilation system, mind working. _'Now where would they put Duo? Someplace where they can't hear him is a start because he's probably yelling his head off right now.'_ Eventually after crawling through seemingly endless miles of ducts after finding a way out, the sound of Duo's protesting voice reached his ears. 

"You call this food?! I call it's awful, that's what!! Think you'd feed your prisoners better in order to get them to talk!!" 

_'Yup...there's Duo. Yelling as I thought he would be.'_ Quatre went up to the grate and looked in. 

There was Duo muttering darkly to himself and eating the food reluctantly. Quatre felt his mouth start to water; it had also been awhile since he'd eaten anything at all. 

"Duo!!" he called in a hiss. "Duo!!" 

Duo's head looked up sharply. "Quatre? Is that you? Where are you?" 

"Over here!" he stuck a hand through the vent. 

"Well I'll be damned. You got into the vents, huh? Smart." Duo gave him a grin. What did you use?" 

"My security card. Here." he passed it through the vent. "I want to get out of here and eat something." 

"You mean you haven't eaten? Anything at all?" Duo took the card and began working. "They've been giving me meals at least once a day. Go figure." he paused as he went to work on the third screw. "What happened in that room Quatre? I heard noise. Sounded like a fight. A pretty bloody one by the sound of it too." 

Quatre's tongue ran over the healing split in his lip with a grimace. "You don't want to know Duo; trust me on this one." 

"All right then." he caught the last screw and removed the grate. "Let's get out of here. Did you find a way out?" 

"Yeah. I just had to come and find you first. Not that that was too hard." he turned around, heading down the metal sheets. 

"Quatre..." Duo asked as they headed down the shaft. 

"Yeah?" 

"Never mind." Duo said as the fresh air started to reach them. "I just want to get out of here too." 

Quatre didn't reply as he reached the outside grate and began unscrewing the bolts. Quickly, he slid out and jumped to the ground, leaning heavily against the wall. 

"You sure you're OK Quatre?" Duo asked peering into his face worriedly. 

"Yeah yeah." he waved away Duo's concern. "I just want to get away from this hellhole." 

"Don't blame you at all. Are you sure you're fine? You really don't sound like it." 

"Let me get fixed up, have something to eat and some sleep and I'll be fine Duo." he said wearily. 

Duo didn't respond, but gave him a look, before heading for the fence. Finding the metal cutters hidden in his hair, he cut away a small portion of the fence before slipping through it. Quatre followed, trying to not hiss from the pain of his ribs. 

"Look...we're going to hide out for a bit until you feel better OK?" Duo said as the left stealthily. "And I'll call the Maganacs for you." 

"Thanks Duo." 

"Don't thank me; I'm the one calling the Maganacs remember? They'll have my head for letting this happen to you." 

Quatre chuckled as they walked in to the trees. "Please tell me you still have the information we came here for?" 

"Yup; safe away in my hair. Don't worry about it. Let's just get you patched up all right?" 

Quatre didn't reply, focusing all his energy to getting as far away from the base and Orton as much as possible. 

~*~

Blood...everything seemed to be soaked in it; and it seemed to be coming from him. Then he felt the fists that kept raining down on him as if they would never end. But this time instead of fighting back, he tried to escape them; yet wherever he went they followed, relentless, merciless, like an unending torrent. 

"Quatre!! Quatre!! Wake up man!!" 

Puzzled, he looked around as the fists started vanishing; where had Duo's voice come from? 

"Quatre!! Wake up!!" 

His eyes opened to see Duo's concerned face; so he had been dreaming. "Yes Duo? Why did you wake me up?" 

"Take a look. For starters you're on the floor and not in bed." 

"What?" getting up he looked around to see the bed on the opposite side of the room; and all the things that had been knocked over to the floor. 

"I've heard of sleep walking but this is ridiculous. What's bugging you so much Q-man?" 

"Nothing Duo. It's all right. What time is it?" 

"About three thirty in the morning. Are you going to go...ah hell, you're probably not. Just try to keep it down would you? I would like to get some sleep tonight, eh? Or else I'll have to drink coffee in the morning." 

"Sorry Duo. I'll keep it down." he went around picking up all the fallen pieces thinking; there was someone who would understand. "Duo?" 

"Hm?" he paused in the doorway, rubbing his head. 

"Do you have Jess' cell number?" 

"Yeah. It's on the fridge downstairs. Talk to her at least then and get over whatever this is all right?" he yawned. "Night Q-man." 

"Night Duo. Sorry about waking you up." 

Duo disappeared into the hall, waving off his comment. Picking up all the fallen objects he placed them back in their places before he went downstairs to see the small piece of paper stuck to the fridge with a magnet. Taking it he headed to the living room, turning on the table lamp. His fingers started shaking as he dialled the number; he had faced worse odds in the battlefield; why did dialling her number seem so...monumental? He put the receiver to his ear, half hoping she would pick up. 

"Hello?" came a sleep rough voice. 

"Jess?" he asked. 

"Quatre." bedsheets rustled as she moved. "How you doing? Finish any missions lately? Heard you were with Duo up in England. Is it really nice up there?" 

"It's OK; doesn't rain as much as people say it does. Did I wake you up too?" he asked softly. 

"Hey, I had to get up in about ten minutes; I'll live. So what's new?" 

Quatre remained silent not sure of how to say it in words. 

"Quatre? What's wrong? You're like never this quiet. Are you OK?" 

"No." he whispered in a slightly trembling voice. "I'm not. Jess...I feel so..." he trailed off, still unsure of how to say it. 

"Have you talked to anyone else about this? What ever it is?" 

"No." 

"Do you just want to talk to me about it?" 

"I think you'd understand better." 

"Would you like to talk to me in person? Or over the phone?" 

"I don't want to have you fly in from..." 

"I'm in Japan now." 

"I don't want you to fly in from Japan; it's too far and-" 

"Quatre...where exactly in England are you?" 

"Jess-" 

"You think of others far too much Quatre. For once I'm not going to listen to you. Where are you? London?" 

"Dorchester." he murmured. 

"Ah I liked the Dorchester safe house; all Victorian and moody. I'll see you in two days all right?" 

"Jess?" 

"Yes Quatre?" she asked. 

"Please don't tell Rashid or the others." 

"Quatre, I think that they'd be very-" 

"Please...don't. Rashid and Abdul would never let me go on a mission again." 

Her voice went soft from its stern hesitancy. "All right. This will be between you and me. Not another soul will know." 

"Thank you." he said quietly. "You really don't have to-" 

"I'll see you in two days Quatre." she had a laugh in her voice. "Let me go now so I can pack and come." 

"But your mission-" 

"Some things are more important that being V's little puppet; besides I never really listen to her anyways." she paused. "Want a souvenir? I can get you a stupid t-shirt if you want." 

He laughed slightly. "Whatever you want to bring me will be fine." 

"Knew I could get you to laugh. OK I gotta go now if I'm gonna get there soon, all right? Bye Quatre." 

"Bye Jess." he hung up the phone, wondering how he was going to face her when she came. 

~*~

Weary, Quatre shuffled down into the bright morning kitchen, heading for the teapot to make himself a strong cup of tea; this had been the third sleepless day he had in a row. _'Where's Jess? She should be here by now.'_ Plunking himself down at the kitchen table, he stared into his cup of swirling heated liquid. Taking a sip, he tried to calm the anxious nerves inside of him. Part of him didn't want to talk but he couldn't keep up with the strange behaviour with everyone not asking questions; it was slowly gnawing away at him. 

"I don't think he's up yet. Let me go and see." 

Quatre looked up in time to see Duo walk into the kitchen, Jess walking behind him. He ducked his head back down quickly. 

"Or he's sitting here having a cup of tea." she smiled at him before looking at Duo. "Off you go Duo. Go have a doughnut down at the coffee shop or something." 

"Typical woman. Kicking me out already and it isn't even nine." he paused. "Oh my God...did I just sound like Wufei there?" 

"Yes. So go and get some sugar in your system...but not too much all righty?" 

"Fine fine. But you two better not be making out when I get back!" 

"Out Duo!!" Jess ordered, pointing to the door. 

"Bye!" he smiled cheerily before closing the door. 

"Aie...I see why Wufei calls him a baka sometimes." 

Quatre gave a wistful smile into his cup. 

"Quatre...what's wrong? Duo says you've been acting strange ever since the mission. And that something happened when someone was interrogating you." 

"He wasn't very nice about it. But I supposed I provoked him in a manner of speaking." 

"Quatre...look at me?" she asked quietly. 

"I don't really want to." he whispered, still looking into his cup. 

"Why not? You have nothing to be ashamed of Quatre." she took his hand gently. "No matter what it may be. You have such a kind heart; if it was violence, then you must have been pushed to the limit." 

He simply turned his face up so she could see. Her breath was drawn in sharply. Hesitantly her fingers reached up before they drew back. 

"They don't hurt anymore." he said softly. "You can touch them." 

"My God...such scars..." her fingers trailed the one down his cheek. "This was...savage..." she shook her head. "How did this happen Quatre?" 

"This colonel was trying to get me to talk. When I said no the second time, he got violent." he said quietly. 

"How so?" she whispered, hand still on his face. 

"He...punched me in the face." 

"Did you hit him back?" 

"Not right away...after he threatened me again...and you." he paused. "Then I insulted him a bit....and he hit me again. Then I lost it." 

"Quatre..." she looked at his with concern. "You have no reason to be ashamed of that. He pushed you and-" 

"I'm a pacifist Jess!!" he shot up out of his seat. "I fight in this war yes, but no violence beyond necessary. When I was fighting this Colonel...it was beyond necessary; I wanted to kill the man Jess!! Kill him; with my bare hands!!" 

"Then you would say that you were brutal?" 

"Allah...I don't think that's even the word for it Jess. He just got me so angry that I lost it." he sank back into the seat, face buried in his hands. "I am such a terrible person Jess... he didn't deserve that." 

"Didn't deserve it?!" she looked at him incredulously. "I can't believe you. Come." she took his hand and started leading him upstairs. 

"What now Jess?" he asked in a sad tone. 

"Here." she dragged him into the bathroom and turned on the light revealing a huge vanity mirror. "What do you see? Tell me Quatre." 

"I don't want to look. All I see is shame." 

"You want to know what I see? Scars that you should never have, but they are there on your face. I see the work of some sicko in Oz who needed to beat out his frustration and chose you. I swear to God I feel like hunting down the bastard who did this to you and making him pay." 

Hesitantly he looked up into the mirror, seeing the scars, the testimonies, for the first time . Tears started running down his face as he gazed at his reflection. 

"Quatre...what's wrong?" she looked at him. "Why are you crying?" 

"It was just so...brutal Jess. It was so violent...it was awful..." he tried to stop the tears but they were flowing too freely now. "It...was...so..." he stopped in a choked sob. "And I did some of it." 

She didn't say anything, just hugging him tightly, stroking his hair, murmuring into his ear softly. Quatre hugged her back, letting it all out; all the guilt and all the anger he still felt towards the man. 

"Feel better?" she whispered as he finally stopped. 

"Yes. Thank you for not listening to me Jess." he said, looking at her. 

"Any day." she looked at him. "Hey you're wearing the clothes you bought at the mall." 

"Yeah. These jeans are actually very comfortable; to think I wore slacks all the time." 

She smiled. "Look I just want to ask you one more thing OK?" 

"Yeah?" 

"Would you happen to know the Colonel's name?" 

"It was Colonel Samuel Orton. Why?" 

"Samuel...Orton...." she said slowly. 

"Yes. Why?" he asked seeing the pale look on her face. 

"God consider yourself lucky that you just escaped with what you have Quatre." 

"What are you talking about Jess?" he asked. 

"Please Quatre...promise me that if you see him again, you'll never fight him. Ever." she looked at him, pleading in her eyes. 

"Jess-" 

"Please Quatre, please. Just promise me...that's all I want you to do." her voice wavered slightly. "Please." 

He looked at her, seeing fear, sadness and concern deep in her eyes; that and the feelings emanating off of her. "All right Jess; I won't." 

"Thank you Quatre." she whispered, gratefulness in her shimmering eyes. 

Her hands went to his face again, touching the scars again, lightly, before she hugged him again tightly, face buried in his neck. "I'm so glad you're alive." 

He didn't reply, simply hugging back as response, feeling slightly troubled as her tears slid down his neck. He had seen her expression as she touched the flaws on his face; as if she was recollecting her times with her husband over again. He felt his heart wrench as the relief, sorrow, understanding and pain flowed out of her, washing over him; such powerful emotions he never suspected she could ever posses. 

_'I won't let anyone hurt you again Jess.'_ His arms tightened around her almost instinctively. _'I promise you that.'_

~*~


	9. Nine

**Torment of Paradise**

~*~

Chapter 9

~*~

The quiet twitter of birds came through the glass to reach her ears as she sat in the small window alcove. _'At least they don't have to deal with the problems we do. They just fly around and do as they please; they only have to worry about cats and such.'_ She smiled a bit at her own mindless wanderings, before turning back to her work; all the damage reports and sheets requiring her signature wasn't helping her mood much. 

"Stop procrastinating Lara; this war would never end if nobody did anything. Hell there probably wouldn't be a war if they did that." she muttered before going back to her work. 

Pausing for a second, she turned and opened the window before going back to her desk and focusing on her tasks. She was so intent that she didn't even hear the door open or the silent figure that came and sat in the seat before her desk. 

"For once I find you working, hm?" 

Startled, she looked up. "Zechs! You really must stop doing that; you'll give me a heart attack one day!" 

He chuckled. "Sorry; but seeing you actually work…I had to see this for myself." 

"Are you implying that I don't work at all Sir?" she gave him a slightly questioning look. 

"No. But whenever I come in here for something, you're usually looking out of the window or reading." 

Her face flushed a bit. "My head may be in the clouds sometimes-" 

"I'd say a good portion of the time." he replied quietly a smile on his face. 

"But," she continued, face flushing even more. "I get my duties done and very well too; I'm not that willing to change my current method Sir." 

"I see nothing wrong with it Lara. You do excellent work in fact." he paused, giving her a slight smirk. "I hope you do have those forms for me, ready to go." 

"Yes Sir. They're right here." she reached into a drawer and took out the file. "They're even alphabetized and prioritized." 

"You did all that?" he leafed through the folder. "I'm guessing you were one of those overachievers in school?" 

"I…never thought so…I mean…" she trailed off at a complete loss of what to say. 

"So was I; don't worry about it." 

"Is there anything else you'll be needing Sir?" she asked, turning back to her work. 

"Lara?" he asked. 

"Yes?" she looked up at him, waiting to hear his response. 

He simply looked at her for what seemed like an eternity, those blue eyes piercing into hers before he finally spoke. "I want you to supervise the overhaul of Tallgeese for me." 

"Me Sir?" 

"Yes, you. I think you'd drive the mechanics as hard as I would." he paused. "You seemed to have when we had the Gundam you found." 

"Yes…well…things needed to be done and they weren't doing them. So I gave a small…. 'kick' so to say." 

He chuckled a bit. "Then you'll do the job for me?" 

"Yes Sir. If you don't mind me asking…where are you going?" 

"Away for a bit; nothing big really." he rose and went to the door. "If I come back, will I find you doing your usual thing when I come back?" 

"Most likely Sir." she looked up at him to see another question forming. "Yes Sir?" 

"Would you stop calling me 'Sir' all the time. You can call me Zechs." 

"But…that's not protocol Sir; it would be-" 

"Fine then; I order you to call me Zechs; better?" 

She couldn't help but smile as he did. "Very well…Zechs. I hope your trip goes well." 

"I'll see you when I get back Lara." he said, closing the door behind himself. 

As soon as the door shut, Lara felt a wave of relief wash over her; why did she always feel so nervous around him? He was her superior true…but why did she always feel some other sort of tension between them? 

"Zechs…" she said again, his name moving over her tongue easily; it felt like a forbidden word to her. 

Placing down her pen, she turned back to the window looking outside contemplatively. _'I wish my parents hadn't raised me in such the traditional way; I guess money does that to you though; binds you to your traditions and duties, while the rest of the world goes on changing and evolving.'_ Rising up from her seat, she went to the window, and sat on the alcove seat once more. _'They change and there you are stagnating and clinging to the dying ways.'_

With a sigh, she looked down to see the birds, moving through the tree tops, happy in their world. _'We used to be like that once…me and Jess. Carefree, young…and I had to ruin it all for us; I was such the fool then.'_ She knew it would take a long time Jess to forgive her, someone didn't forget something like that so easily. Never would she forget the look on Jess' face when she stormed into the cafeteria; the whole place had gone deadly silent. And those words…they still scathed even now; because they were true to every last condemning one. 

_'But I had to stick to mob rule didn't I?'_ her face gave a bitter sort of smile. _'I had to be a gutless coward; well no more. I became myself a few weeks after.'_ That feeling had been so intoxicating; the freedom to be herself and not conform to anyone's standards; not have to wear particular clothes, act a certain way…she now understood what Jess had been talking about so many years ago, when she started talking about freedom of individuality. 

_'You can only be yourself no matter how many layers you put on; the real you is always there waiting to come out at one time or another.'_ she paused, staring out abstractedly at the grass below. _'How right you were Jess; how right you were.'_ Then she saw a slinking form go through the nearby bushes; a cat looking for its next meal. Silent she watched as the cat came closer and closer to its prey, the paws muffling its approach. Closer and closer it came before- 

"Huh?" turning her head at he sound she looked at the phone. "Who is calling me now?" 

Looking back outside, she saw all the birds in fight through the sky. Smiling to herself she sat back down at the desk, answering the annoying ring. "Yes?" 

"You have a call from the Children's Hospice Lieutenant Barrask." came an operator voice. 

"Put it through." she said rubbing her temple; why did she get a bad feeling already? 

"Lieutenant Barrask...this is Andrea calling. We talked when you brought your brother here." 

"Yes I remember; what has Adrian done now?" 

"Yes…well…in regards to Adrian…he is a unique child, have no doubt-" 

"Out with it." she growled; may as well get this over with. 

"He can no longer stay here. He's too disruptive to the other children. I'm very sorry Lieutenant Barrask-" 

"When do I have to pick him up by?" she sighed. 

"By the end of the week would be good…if you can. Or you can send a relative or family friend to pick him up." 

"I'll see what I can do Mrs. Connely. Thank you for your call." she hung up immediately. "I'm gonna strangle that idiot when I get my hands on him. It took me forever to get him in there." 

With a sigh she rubbed her eyes and turned back to the work on her desk; may as well do it since her day was shot to hell. With a defeated sigh she turned back to her work, only to have the phone ring once more. 

"It never bloody well ends…Hello?" she barked into the phone slightly. 

"Nice to see you're in a cherry mood." came Jess' dry tone. "Look I need…some information Lara." 

"Information huh? First off…how did you get the private number for this phone?" 

"There are these things called computers Lara." 

"Uh…huh…hacker; and what kind of information do you need Jess? How to find a boyfriend or something?" 

"Don't you start with that again." Jess said in a warning tone. 

"Well," Lara said a sudden idea coming to her head. "I'll help you if you help me; a fair trade off." 

Jess paused for a few minutes. "I'm not telling you where I am; or where the others are." 

"No no…this is much more important. I don't care about that; in fact I think with your skills, you'll do well in this." 

"All right then; you make it sound like cake walk, but I get the feeling that I'm going to regret it for awhile." 

"All right here it is. Adrian got himself kicked out of the hospice I managed to get him into and-" 

"Oh thanks, make the spoiled brat's fucking babysitter. I swear to God if it wasn't for him, I'd…" she subsided into mutters. 

"Yes well you take care of Adrian for a bit and I'll get you your information." 

"It's highway robbery." Jess gave a disgusted sigh. "All right; but I'm not carting him round with me, you do realize that? I'll find him some other place to stay…maybe with my…I'll find him some place to stay then." 

"Thank you Jess; now what information did you want then?" 

There came a pause. "I want all the information you have on a Colonel Samuel Orton. Everything you have and I mean everything." 

"Colonel Orton huh?" she paused thinking. "I never liked the guy; what's your beef with him?" 

"Don't you worry about my beef with him; I have plenty of reasons to despise that…" Jess trailed off, seemingly regaining composure of herself. "All right. Where's your brother now?" 

"At a hospice in France. That was the only place I could find for him." Lara paused, hearing a strained silence coming from the other end. "Jess…why are you…against Orton anyways?" 

"None of your business." came her curt reply. "I'll find your brother easily. Just send me the information with him all right?" 

"Yeah. Sure. Bye Jess." she hung up hearing a prompt dead tone. 

Slowly, she hung up the phone, looking at it slowly. _'You're not telling me something, are you Jess? But what is it?'_

~*~

Sighing while rubbing her eyes, Lara looked back down at the sea of files on her desk. It must have been about one in the morning and she really wanted to go home, yet the files couldn't leave the base. Which meant she was here until she had all the information that Jess wanted. 

"Why does she have a beef against this guy anyways? How could she possibly know him?" she muttered to herself as she dove back into her work. "It doesn't make sense…her calling out of the blue like that; she's got to have a reason." 

Turning back to her task, she began swimming back through the papers finding all the usual things and typing them away into the screen before her. Name, age, place of birth, all the usual things including a brief in depth biography of his life, all there for her to send off with Adrian. _'God, this guy led such a boring life and he's as messed up as he is now? I don't believe it; no body can be that fucked up from…there's something I've never seen before.'_ She looked through some of the other sheets and files; it wasn't there at all. _'Status: married. That's very interesting. Married life can mess up some people. Now who was he married to, that's the question.'_ Poring over the sheet, she couldn't find any reference to the lady's name. 

"For God's sake, I'm done here. What is here, I'm gonna just send off to her." pulling out a disk from her drawer, she slid it into the drive, knocking over a pile of papers in the process. "Bloody fucking hell!!" she muttered, bending down in her seat and picking them up. Sitting upright, she saw something on the top page that she never expected to see and took her completely by surprise. "So that's why…" she whispered. "Why didn't she ever tell me?" 

Finishing up quickly, she typed up the rest, before sealing it in a protected priority envelope and sent it off in the mail. That was the quickest way for it to get to France, and get this done and over with. Sighing heavily, she turned off the computer and headed down to her quarters at the end of the hall in the other building. She'd feel much better once she got in a decent night's sleep. Just as she changed in to some standard sleep clothes, a knock came at the door. Muttering darkly to herself, she got up from her bedside perch and went to the door. 

"Yes? Can I help you?" she found herself looking into a pair of cold grey eyes that made her shiver despite the place being heated. 

"Are you Lieutenant Lara Barrask?" 

"Yes I am. May I ask who you are?" 

"Colonel Samuel Orton." he said in an equally cold voice. "I noticed you just sent off a package to France." he frowned. "May I ask why so late?" 

"The package couldn't wait until morning Sir. And it needed to be sent off by this morning eight a.m. to reach in time." 

"Interesting. And all those files you pulled out." he gave her a dangerous look. "And all about me too. Tell me…are you one of those people whose obsession is others? That sort of behavior is very unflattering for someone of your rank Lieutenant." 

She choked back her gall; how dare he. "If, and I am saying if Sir, I had any sort of compulsion that made me follow people around…it would have to be someone worthwhile." she held back her smirk. "I have always gone for the best that there was available…I tend to be 'selective'...'Sir'." 

"How very good for you then; if you're under Zechs' command." he said in a condescending tone. "You'll need it." 

"How fortunate then that I am capable of interacting with others on many levels and connecting with them to work much better." she stiffened her posture; that should shut him up. 

"How very good for you then." he gave a cruel smile. "And you discovered this all before the tender age of nineteen. My, am I amazed." 

She wished to God that this damnable conversation was done and over with at this very moment; Orton made her skin want to turn inside out. "Thank you…'Sir'." the word was tinged with slight sarcasm. "If you'll excuse me, I do have responsibilities to take care of in the morning and I would like to get some rest to do my duties to their fullest." 

His eyes narrowed at the lack of 'Sir'. "I'll be watching you Barrask. Be sure of that. Something about you isn't right and never was if you ask me." 

_'But I wasn't was I?'_ "Am I dismissed Sir?" she passed a bored expression over her face briefly. 

"Dismissed." he said curtly. "Oh," he paused as she froze at her quarter doors. "Say hi to your brother for me, would you?" 

Lara didn't reply simply glaring at his back until he was gone from the hallway until she closed the door, stalking to her bed and fuming as she got beneath the covers. If Samuel Orton had one death wish, he would dare to lay a finger on Adrian; he wouldn't live to see the next day if Adrian was hurt in any way at all by that twisted mind. 

"I am so glad that she's taking him away." she sighed as she turned onto her side settling down for a night of fitful sleep. "Even if she hates me still." 

~*~

The clatter of tools being used and deposited back into boxes filled the room. In front of her was the massive white mecha that Zechs had left in her care. Even now as he looked at it, she still couldn't figure out how Zechs piloted the suit, it seemed very strenuous on the body with its sheer size alone. 

"Lieutenant Barrask?" 

Looking up at the call, she saw the mechanic up on the upper railing. Quickly she ran up, taking the offered clipboard. "What's the problem?" 

"These outputs can't possibly be right for this suit, can they?" he looked at her puzzled. "These readouts indicate an output level that would kill someone if they pushed themselves even a bit past the edge." 

"These readouts are correct," she glanced at the nametag. "Danny. These are the normals for Lieutenant-Colonel Zechs' suit. He has the ability to control this suit extremely well." 

The mechanic took the board back and began looking over it. "These are the norms?" he shook his head. "All right Lieutenant; they just seemed so odd that I had to check." 

"You're the latest mechanic aren't you?" she gave a small smile. 

"Yes." his face went a bit red. "I'm terribly sorry to have called you up here unnecessarily and-" 

"Better you did and there's nothing wrong than not and having something malfunction." she looked up at the suit. "This suit will be in perfect working order when Zechs gets back." 

"It will be Lieutenant, don't worry. Does he return today? Or tomorrow?" 

"As far as I know, he returns tomorrow." she glanced at the man. "Can't wait to get back to the other hangars?" 

"In a way." he admitted after a few minutes hesitation. "I miss my Jeeps." 

"The sooner you get Tallgeese up and running……" 

"Yes Ma'am." he got back to work, understanding the implications. 

Smiling a bit, she made her way back down to check up on the electricians and the many other various things that required her supervision in some form or another. The time seemed to fly right by until she looked up and saw the clock and saw the time. 

"All right everyone. Twenty-one hundred hours!!" she called out loudly. "Time to pack it in for the night!" 

Even as she sat down at the computer console, the entire crew filed out, leaving her alone in the silent empty hangar. Slowly, she looked up at the mecha again for the countless time that night. She walked up to it via the railing again, standing before it, thinking; how did Zechs feel piloting such a suit, especially in battle when one move could mean his death? Slowly, she reached out to touch the metal; in all of the five days that she had been doing this she had never once touched the suit…and the urge was strong now. 

"It's not as if I'm going to break it by doing this." she scoffed lightly at herself, yet her hand remained poised out there in the air, daring to but not too sure. 

Finally, balling up the feeling and pushing down past her stomach, she reached out and touched the metal, feeling the smooth paint beneath her hand. She couldn't quite believe what she was doing; it was too much like a guilty pleasure. But everything about Zechs was like that to her; she couldn't have him or even tell him how she felt; he was her superior officer and of course it would be against all decorum to say such things to him. 

_'Zechs…if only I could tell you. Maybe one day after this war is over and we return back to our lives. But would you remember me? Would you even care? Would you reciprocate?'_

A sudden slam of a door made her jerk her hand way guiltily. Peering down quickly over the railing edge to see two figures enter the hangar; one unknown, the other Samuel's; she'd recognized that unreal tall form anywhere. 

"Is anyone in here?" came Samuel's voice. 

"No Sir. The maintenance crew cleared out about forty-five minutes ago." 

She clapped a hand to her mouth quietly; had so much time passed by already? Had she really been that oblivious? She kicked herself as she realized that anyone could have seen her perhaps; she had been lucky tonight in some respect at least. 

"All right, I have a mission for you, private; nothing too hard at all; very straightforward. Here's your outline." 

"Yes Sir." came the salutatory voice. "I shall do this to the best of my abilities and send your reports to your secretary every day and-" 

"Not to my secretary Private. That would mean that these reports would have been read." a pause came from Samuel's end. "I want this kept as quiet as possible. No one must know that I'm looking for her. Not a soul; not even Treize Khushrenada himself." 

"Colonel Orton Sir…"there came a brief pause. "I shall finish my mission Sir. According to this, she was last in the U.S., seen by Lieutenant Barrask. Pick up the trail from there?" 

"Yes." 

"And when I find my target?" 

"Don't do anything. Just follow her and alert me immediately. I will fly out there to wherever myself and take over from there." 

"Yes Sir. Dismissed?" 

"Yes Private. Dismissed." 

The sound of boots was heard echoing away followed by the closing shut of the door. Keeping close to the opposite edge of the rail, she tried to shrink back even more. Samuel was now looking for Jess; was what it said in the report true? It couldn't possibly be- 

_'Oh fuck.'_ She watched as a missed tool went over the edge, hit accidentally by her wrist, and slamming into the floor with a ringing echo. 

"Who's there?" Samuel's voice reverberated around like a disembodied person. "Show yourself! Now!!" 

Lara looked around frantically as she heard Samuel's footsteps start up the stairs slowly, the sound of a gun being cocked reaching her ears as well. Rushing up to Tallgeese she didn't hesitate to open the door and get in, praying that Samuel didn't check it; she got the feeling that he wouldn't be beyond framing her for something. 

"Must have been my imagination." the words reached her through the metal sheets of gundanium. She didn't dare breathe a sigh of relief as long as he was still out there on the railing. 

"Ah…Colonel Orton. You are on time. I was almost expecting that you wouldn't show." came a silky voice. 

"And disappoint a fellow Colonel? Have you no faith in me Une?" came a slightly mocking tone. 

_'Samuel? And Une?'_ Still she held her breath as the words started to filter in to her ears. Half the things she heard them talking of shocked her too the core; what they were proposing was insane suicide for the Oz organization; assassinate Treize and take control for themselves? Never in her life had she heard of such lunacy; Treize was what kept Oz going strong and on its present winning streak. Even against the Gundam pilots. 

"That they would do such a thing…" she breathed as Samuel and Une kept up the lengthy discussion as to how to go about their plans in the quietest way. "Such…idiocy…human stupidity and greed beyond any I've ever seen; they wish to plunge the world into chaos!" 

"Oh Une?" came Samuel's voice one more. "You do remember what I told you about my small personal 'problem'?" 

"Yes, very well. I still say you should find her; you would be doing the right thing in bringing her back to your side; such a disobedient wife, callously abandoning you like that. Obviously there was a way her parents raised her that was wrong." 

"Your advice on the matter was most helpful. I intend to contact her parents and say that I'm in the effort of finding their daughter." he paused. "I may have to leave for a slight period of time once she is found. Shall this be a problem?" 

"None at all; simply send the papers to my desk and I'll sign them right away." Une replied back promptly. 

"Thank you very much in this matter Une." he said, graciously. 

_'Sure…just be all nice and charming to the one holding the cards huh?'_ Lara held back from gritting her teeth; that might have given her away. _'Two can play at that game Orton.'_

"And you have been an invaluable help in the plans we have formed together." she paused for a second. "Get some rest Samuel and we shall discuss this matter tomorrow further when we have our meeting." 

Breath bated, she waited until pure silence enshrouded her in the cockpit of the mecha. Her hands slid over the controls, briefly noting that these were the same ones that Zechs himself used. The door opened to reveal an empty railing which she stepped out onto silently. Her feet were sure as they took her back to her quarters for her rest; it must have been at least one in the morning now and she was exhausted. But even as she went to sleep, a childish form of glee suffused her. 

~*~

Sitting serenely in her office, Lara worked at the desk, the window wide open allowing in the soothing music of the birds perched outside in the trees. She was actually feeling a bit cheerful…but then again, she always felt cheerful when she was about to undertake something this dangerous albeit it was foolhardy enough. 

"Reports, reports and more reports." she mumbled as she sifted through the pile on her desk. "These things multiply like bunnies; I had two and there they go exponentially." she sighed before looking over the latest one she pulled out from her pile. 

Soon enough, her door opened and when she looked up she saw a face that she most certainly didn't want to see. "Yes Colonel?" 

Samuel walked into the room. "What's this call you had on Monday?" he demanded almost testily. 

"You would know about that. It is authorized for the Hospice to call here; by Colonel Une if I recall correctly." 

"I mean the call afterwards. That you took; from an unknown source too may I add." he rested his hands on her desk. 

She looked up at him and almost smiled. "It was a telemarketer. You know…those annoying people who usually call during dinner thereby interrupting it? It got through somehow and I was the unlucky recipient." 

"Don't give me your smartass comments Barrask." his eyes narrowed. "If you are consorting with the enemy, I shall have you court-martialed and executed." 

She simply rose, looking him dead in the eye. "How pleasant 'Sir' "this time she didn't bother to hide it, allowing the full sardonic tone to come out. "I'm sure I shall be careful of my actions in the future to prevent further arousal of suspicion on your part." 

"See that you do." he replied, seemingly accepting her appealing pacification. 

"Oh…Colonel Samuel?" she called walking to the front and leaning against her desk edge as he opened the door. 

He threw a glare back at her not deigning to answer; that didn't ruffle her much. 

"I would be wary of court-martials yourself." her eyes suddenly developed an avid and dangerous gleam. "And I for one have the no faith in you unlike Colonel Une last night." 

Samuel's' entire body went stiff before he slammed the door shut immediately. Lara went back to her desk, humming happily to herself; and it was in this mood that the door opened again once more twenty minutes later. 

"Humming now also?" 

"Yes I am Zechs." she looked up to see him leaning against the door. "How was your trip?" 

"Very well." he smiled back at her. "I trust that Tallgeese is in perfect working order?" 

"Of course Zechs." she rose from her desk. "I can show you now if you wish." 

Leaving her office, she and Zechs headed down the hall to the hangar, talking about the finer points of the suit as they went. Even as they passed by Samuel en route, she didn't do anything, not even bat an eyelash; not only was it not worth it, she always played for keeps when it came to hardball. 

~*~


	10. Ten

**Torment of Paradise**

~*~

Chapter 10

~*~

"Jess. Jess. I'm hungry Jess. Can you get me something to eat please?" 

Wearily, Jess opened her eyes to see Adrian standing by her bedside in his pyjamas. "There's some food in the kitchen kid." she turned away from him going back to sleep. "Knock yourself out." 

"But I want pancakes." now an insistent pulling came on her blanket. "Make me some pancakes Jess." 

She groaned, sitting up in bed with a bleary glare at Adrian. "Let's get one thing straight again here; I don't cook; never have and never will all right? Have some cereal and milk. I think there's Fruit Loops or something." 

"Can't you at least try? I thought you were cool." he pouted. 

"Your shameless manipulation won't work on me or change facts. I don't cook Adrian." she glanced at that clock. "Lord child, it's seven in the morning!! Why the hell did you wake me up now? It's too early!!" 

"I want to eat. And I want pancakes." his lips trembled. "I'll scream if I have to." 

"Fine; you want pancakes?" she said giving him an evil grin. "You'll get your pancakes all right." 

She stalked to the kitchen, pulling out the bowls and ingredients. Adrian stayed on the fringes of the kitchen watching what she was doing. As soon as everything was assembled out on the countertop, she turned to him. 

"Get to it. You can make your own breakfast." she smiled at him. 

"But..." Adrian started to fluster. "the pancakes aren't made yet!!" 

"Of course not. You have to make them and-" she winced as a loud cry filled the kitchen. "Oh for bloody Heavens sake!!" she exploded as Adrian started to work himself up into a small tantrum. "Fine!! I'll make your bleedin' pancakes!!" 

"Thank you Jess!!" he exclaimed before bouncing out into the living room to watch morning cartoons. 

"Bloody fucking evil with no shame that's what I say." Jess muttered as she went upstairs taking an aspirin for her now throbbing head. Grabbing her cell phone, she went back down, dialling a number. 

"Hello?" 

"Morning Quatre." she said. 

"Hi Jess. What's wrong? You don't sound like you're in a good mood this morning. Didn't you sleep much last night?" 

"No. I got back here at four a.m. and guess who woke me up at seven? Lara's 'charming' little brother." 

"No wonder you're cranky. Only three hours sleep." he said, with a slight chuckle. "You did agree to watch him you know. Is something wrong; you never call when you first wake up." 

"Please tell me that you know how to make pancakes. I am at a complete loss here Quatre." 

"You...don't know how to make pancakes?" he sounded a bit amazed. "Jess, it's the simplest thing on Earth." 

"Quatre...if you had ever seen me cook you wouldn't be saying that. What do I do? I don't need another headache from Adrian here." 

"Well first off do you have instant mix?" 

"Yeah. I got it right here." 

"Then use that. And follow the instructions precisely. Don't improvise or anything." 

"OK." she started measuring out the flour. "So how are you doing? Did you go back to Arabia yet; face the music?" 

"Um...not yet. I talked to Rashid though. He was...less than happy." 

"Hmm." she didn't say anything measuring out the water now. "So when are you going to go back. Sooner or later they are going to give you a piece of their mind." 

"I know they will. They're always been a great bunch of guy...but it's starting to feel a bit...smothering." 

"Just ask then for a bit of alone time. I'm sure they'll give it to you Quatre; they're very reasonable." 

"They won't be when they see what happened to me." he sighed. 

"I know. Uh...Quatre?" she looked down in to the bowl filled with the dough. "Is the mixture supposed to be lumpy?" 

"Lumpy? No; did you mix it all up evenly?" 

"I mixed it." she looked down helplessly at the bowl. "God, ask me to pilot a suit; no problem. Blow up a base; piece of cake. But make breakfast like a pancake....no, far too hard for me to do properly, I get lumpy dough. I now remember why I let Duo cook before; he could actually do it." 

Quatre chuckled at her muttering. "Would you like cooking lessons?" 

"If you want a stove to go boom then yeah, sure, why not?" she laughed. "Maybe I won't singe my hair this time." 

"You singed your hair trying to cook?" he sounded amazed again. 

"I was young all right and I was trying to help my parents OK? And in the process made a complete disaster of the kitchen." 

"What happened to it?" 

"Um...ever see those cartoons where the whole kitchen is blackened and destroyed?" 

"Don't tell me you did that." he groaned with a laugh. 

"More or less." she replied a bit sheepishly. "I was nine, cut me some slack; I wasn't the greatest kid but I did my best." 

"I...have no doubt." he snickered. 

"At least you're making the effort to not laugh as much as you really want to." she muttered, trying to smooth out the batter. "Got work today?" 

"Yeah. Not much though. How about you? When are you going to find a place for 'the current bane of my life herein so far' as you eloquently put it last time I talked to you?" 

"I honestly don't know. The kid is a brat yes, but he's only got Lara and she's with Oz; I really don't know. I could take him to my parents' house. But I don't think they want to see me again." 

"Why? What did you do? It couldn't have been that bad." 

"Well...since I left my husband...I haven't really talked to them. I send them letters and stuff...but I haven't seen them in about two years now." 

"In two years Jess? Why not? They are your parents." 

"Well...adoptive parents really. But I still worry about them." 

"So why don't you...oh." he paused. "You don't want him to find you right?" 

"Exactly. My parents think that he's the greatest guy for me; I don't know if they still think that way." 

"I'd say it's worth a shot; even if it is to see them once more and let them know that you're fine. They've probably worried themselves about you all this time Jess." 

"I know Quatre. I feel so bad; but then I think about what would happen if he found me again and..." she gave a shudder. "I wouldn't be able to go back Quatre; I'd rather die than experience that again." 

"It would take a lot for him to hurt you badly again. I mean you've grown now and may be a bit stubborn, but you'd live." he paused. "At least until I came and busted you out of wherever he was keeping you." 

She laughed feeling her slight melancholy lift. "Gee...would the whole thing come with a horse and shining armour?" 

"Hey...I'm just saying that if you need any help, give me a call all right? And if you want the armour then sure. I know a guy who sells horses; how about a nice Arabian one?" 

"All right; can it be..." she paused for a minute. "how about white? Or maybe a nice brown? No...white; better effects with the sun glinting off metal." 

"You sound like a movie producer." he laughed. 

"Uh-huh. Coming to a theatre near you a dumb flick with absolutely no plot whatsoever." she chuckled sighing as she looked back down into the bowl. "Look Quatre, I'm gonna go now; this batter is still lumpy and I'm gonna run out and get doughnuts or something." 

"They have doughnut shops in the French countryside?" 

"Whatever; so long as it is edible food and not snails or frogs, I am happy." she replied. 

"I can hear the smile in your voice. At least you aren't grumpy any more." 

"Yeah. Talking to someone really helped." she put the bowl in the sink. "Duo would have just stayed out of my way and all." 

"Hey, you're not crossing paths with Wufei today, so be glad. Did he really sit on you that time?" 

"Yeah. Not like he apologized or anything." she sighed. "Where are you now? Still in England?" 

"Yeah; I have a few more missions here and Duo's been shipped off somewhere else." 

"Oh. Got access to a computer?" she asked. 

"Yeah, I have my own laptop, but I never use it. Why." 

"Start using it. I'll chat with you tonight OK?" 

"Where?" 

"I don't know. I usually go to the one on that search engine... you know the really big one with all that stuff? You'll know me when I sign on." 

"I know that one. All right then, I'll talk to you later Jess. Bye." 

"Bye Quatre." she flipped her cell shut, looking at the sad mess of pancake batter in the sink. "Adrian!!" 

"Is my breakfast ready?!" he asked coming into the kitchen. "Hey...there's no pancakes!!" 

"Let's get something straight here. For the past week, you've treated me like a maid; no more. You've been a spoiled brat; no more. You've just let me do everything; no more Adrian." 

"Well Lara said you were going to look after me." he got a smug look on his face. That's what my envelope said when yours came too." 

"First of all, your envelope was in my envelope and I caught you red-handed about to read my personal letter!!" she snapped, voice rising slightly. "Now get dressed Adrian. We're leaving here." 

"I don't wanna." he crossed his arms, standing in the kitchen doorway. "I wanna stay here." 

"Fine. But when I am done dressing, if you're not down here, stuff packed and ready to go, you can stay here and fend for yourself." 

"You wouldn't leave me here alone." 

She simply looked at him before going upstairs and entering her room once more and grabbing her towel. A quick shower later and she was done, in her room, packing her extremely slim suitcase. Pausing she looked at herself in the mirror; Sneakers, jeans, and a ruby tank top underneath the black holey shirt that Quatre had bought for her. Fingering the edge gently, she became lost in her thoughts for a second before snapping out of it and running down the stairs. Adrian was at the bottom, ready to go. 

"Where are we going?" he asked a bit sullenly. 

"You are going to stay with some people I know for a bit until your sister can take care of you herself." 

"What about you? Why do you get to run around where ever you want?" 

"I'm not." she said as she hailed a taxi and had them driven to the nearest train station. 

"So where are you going?" he persisted as the cab started forward. 

"Somewhere." she murmured. _'I'm going home.'_

~*~

Driving sheets of rain beat against the window as the car sped through the narrow streets. _'What are they going to say when I just show back up? With Adrian in tow no less?'_ shifting slightly in her seat, Jess looked over at him before looking back out. _'Lucky kid.'_

Soon enough the cab came to a stop. Paying the man, Jess and Adrian stepped out into the pouring rain, covered by their ponchos, eyes fixed on the large house before them. 

"That's where I'm staying?" Adrian asked, facing her. 

"Yes." she simply stood there for a few minutes before she put one foot forward. "Let's go." 

Almost dumbly she walked up to the door alcove and rang the bell. The light behind the door suddenly went dark as someone stood in front of it. The sound of the lock turning echoed in her head as the door opened slightly. 

"Can I help you?" 

Jess looked to the door crack to see a Japanese woman standing there, waiting for an answer. She opened her mouth, but found no words coming out; what could she possibly say to make up for her absence? 

"Is something wrong?" the lady asked as Jess made a slightly choked sound. "Do you need medical attention?" 

"Jeez Jess say something!" Adrian hissed, nudging her with his suitcase. 

"Jess-chan?" the lady stepped down onto the alcove step they were on, peering underneath the poncho hood. 

_'She's still as short as ever.'_ Jess simply towered over her now that she didn't have the added height of the doorstep. _'Oh man, this was a bad idea; they're gonna kill me for this. Or even worse...disown me.'_

"Jess-chan!! It's really you!!" the lady exclaimed hugging her. 

"Mama!!" she exclaimed surprised by her reaction. "Don't hug me!! I'm soaking wet!! Stop!!" 

"Kami, don't you ever do that to us again!!" she admonished, tears in her eyes as she pulled back. "Come in, come in. Get out of the rain." 

Hesitantly, she and Adrian stepped into the hallway, dripping water on the clean linoleum floor. Taking the ponchos, she snapped them outside a few times before hanging them up in the closet. 

"Where did your mother go?" Adrian asked as they stood in the hallway. 

"Probably to get my father. Which means I am in for the world's biggest lecture when he-" 

"Jessica!!" 

With a slight cringe, she looked down to the hallway end to see her father standing there; and he was still as tall as ever. The look on his face didn't tell her much. And when he came down the hall and stood in front of her the most she could do was gazed unflinchingly at him; she may have been young, but she had experienced far too much to be a dutiful daughter anymore. An eternity seemed to pass before her normally stern father did a very surprising thing; he hugged her also. 

"Papa?" she asked a bit worried as she hugged back. "Are you OK? Did you take any cold medicine tonight?" 

"See Noel; you never hugged her much before and you've gone and scared the child." 

"Aiko, don't start with me." he replied good naturedly before looking back at his daughter. "You have been gone for two years Jessica. Two whole years and not once did we see you." 

"I wrote. Practically every four days Papa, if not more. Please don't be-" 

"We got all your letters. But not once did you say why you up and left so abruptly." 

"Noel, you can lecture her later about these things. Who is this person beside you Jess?" Aiko asked. 

"This is Adrian...Lara's brother. You do remember Lara right?" 

"Yes. I never knew she had a sibling." Noel said looking at Adrian. "How old is he?" 

"He's eight." she glanced down at him. "And surprisingly quiet for once in his life." 

Adrian simply glared up at Jess but didn't say anything. 

"Are you hungry Jess-chan? I just finished dinner." 

"I'm fine Mama. Adrian might be hungry though. Are you?" she looked at him. 

"A little bit." 

"How would you like soup?" Aiko asked bending down to talk to Adrian. 

He nodded his head, and followed her into the kitchen, leaving Jess and Noel alone in the hallway. 

"How about we go and sit in the living room Jessica?" he looked at her, serious once more. "We can talk more now, if you want to." 

Jess simply looked at him, feeling tears well up suddenly. She rushed up to her father and hugged him again. 

"What's wrong?" he asked, looking down at Jess puzzled. 

"I really missed you guys." she whispered. "And I mean really." 

"Maybe we should talk tomorrow; you seem a bit tired tonight." 

"I could use some sleep." she stepped back, wiping away her tears. "Gomen nasai Papa; I never meant to be away for so long but things happened and-" 

"Tell me tomorrow Jessica." he said with a smile. "Go and get some sleep. I'll tell Aiko that you went up early." 

"Arigatou Papa. Good night." she said, shouldering her bag and walking up the stairs to the room at the end. 

Opening the door at the end, she gazed into her room for the first time in almost three years. There was the poster bed, red bedspread neatly tucked in, pillows on top and waiting for a head to rest on. The desk sat by the window, all the pens stuck inside the can, books stacked at the side. With a heavy sigh, she put her bag down, sitting on the edge of her bed, amazed almost. 

"I'm back home." she murmured. "Back home; even if it is for a day or two." 

Taking a quick shower, she came back and sat at her desk setting up her laptop. Her fingers flew across the keyboard as she typed in the address and started clicking away. Soon enough she found herself in the chat room. And there on the screen was the name Sandrock. 

"Jeez, you made it so obvious you know." she couldn't help but chuckle. 

Then a browser popped up on her screen. "Sandrock: u were right anansi, I would recognize u." 

"Anansi: u were pretty obvious urself u know." 

"Sandrock: *laugh* so how did it go with ur parents? Were they mad?" 

"Anansi: no, not at all. i think ill get the lecture tomorrow. *sighs and shakes head* Papa's gonna give me an hour long lecture any bet. u should have heard him when he saw me; he was like 'Jessica!!' scared me half to death!!" 

"Sandrock: aww...need the horse and armour now?" 

Jess couldn't help but laugh out loud as she typed back her response. She felt happiness radiate from inside her again, like when she had that dream that she could never remember. Nothing could possibly spoil what little she had gained for herself now. 

~*~

Stretching her arms up high, Jess walked downstairs heading to the kitchen. "Morning all." she said seeing her parents seated at the table 

"I'd more say good afternoon Jess-chan." Aiko said with a smile. "It's one thirty." 

Jess glanced at the clock as she went about making her customary cup of hot chocolate. "Why didn't you wake me up? I never sleep in past twelve." 

"You looked like you could use it." Noel said. 

"Yes, you are a good one to talk; you got up at eleven." Aiko said nudging her husband. 

"Er...yes well... she must have been very tired and all, so why wake her up?" Noel said, suddenly interested in his mug. "Did you sleep well?" 

"Yes Papa, I did." she sat down at the table, looking between them. "Did you get the newspapers yet?" 

"Actually no. I thought you'd like to get it; I mean you do usually do that." Aiko smiled at her. "Then when you come back we can talk." 

"All right." she sighed, knowing full well that was coming. "How's Adrian doing so far?" she asked as she rose from the table. 

"He's out in the backyard playing. He seems to like it here." Aiko looked at Jess. "Does Lara want us to watch him for here or something?" 

"We'll talk about it." she said. "I'll be right back." 

Slowly, she walked down the hallway to the front door, opening it and reaching for the paper. But what she saw instead made her blood freeze over. The pair of cold grey eyes met hers, intense anger starting to flicker in their depths. She couldn't even breathe; she felt like her entire chest was constricted, she felt like bolting away and never coming back. She felt like she had died again. 

Standing on the front door step, hand about to knock, was Samuel Orton. 

~*~


	11. Eleven

**Torment of Paradise**

~*~ 

Chapter 11

~*~

With a heavy sigh, Quatre looked out the car window, seeing the endless stretches of sand that he knew so well. _'From the flames and into the pit.'_

"You OK Quatre?" 

He looked over at Duo. "I'm about to have my ears talked off; you tell me Duo." 

"True I suppose." Duo shrugged as he peered ahead of the driver. "And why didn't Rashid or the others come to meet you at the airport?" 

"I told him not too." Quatre gave a dry laugh. "But that will probably make him even more edgy." 

"Great. A large Arab out for blood. What the hell have you dragged me into Quatre?! I don't wanna die yet!! I'm young, I'm beautiful, I-" 

"Oh would you stop being so dramatic?" Quatre said. "Besides knowing you, you don't want to die until you've-" 

"Hey Quatre!!" Duo looked at him slightly amazed. "Some things stay out of the eye of things." he shook his head. "Man…you have changed a lot. Before you couldn't even go near the subject without your entire face going red." 

"It's amazing what a beating can do to a person." Quatre smiled a bit. "Makes them re-evaluate some things." 

"Uh-huh. Re-evaluate…hey if that's what you want to call it." he shrugged, sinking back into his chair. "So when the party starts do ya want me there?" 

"I'm fine thank you. They're going to lecture me, not string me up by my thumbs or something." 

"If you say so." Duo looked over at him. "So what did you and Jess talk about when she kicked me out?" 

"You think I'd tell you?" Quatre looked at him. "This was something you couldn't possibly understand Duo; in more ways than one." 

Duo nodded his head, remaining silent as the car started down a long stretch of road. "This is it." he looked over at his blond friend. "Did you at least make a will or something?" 

"Nope." he looked up at the house as it drew closer. "I don't need it." 

Duo shook his head. "Sometimes I don't think that Heero is the crazy one out of all of us." 

Quatre couldn't help but laugh as the stepped out of the car and started up the steps; at least there was something left to laugh about. He paused at the door before opening it hesitantly and stepping in. The house was the same as it had been as before but now he could hear the voice drifting in from the kitchen. 

"Shouldn't Master Quatre be back by now?" Abdul's voice was followed by the sound of pacing feet. 

Quatre looked back at Duo. "Maybe we should give them a moment." he whispered. 

"Quatre, this was your idea not mine." he muttered seeing the look on his face. 

Making a slight face he kept walking, the kitchen entrance drawing steadily closer. Carefully he peered around the edge of the door to see Rashid and Abdul in the kitchen apparently in the middle of a discussion, a few of the other Maganacs milling around. 

"Master Quatre will arrive when he does, I can't predict what time that might possibly be. Calm down Abdul; I am sure he's perfectly fine, wherever he is." 

"Speaking of which," Duo said loudly, entering the kitchen, pulling Quatre in behind him. "guess who's back?' 

The effect was electric. All the Maganacs whipped around to face them, guns drawn, a few chairs knocked over. The look of surprise was replaced on the present faces with relief and growing wonderment. 

"Master Quatre, you shouldn't sneak up on a person like that." Rashid sighed as he reholstered his gun. "When did you arrive?" 

"We just got here." Quatre looked around at everyone. "What were you guys talking about?" 

"Oh, only the fact that you simply ran off on us!! You should have let us accompany you on your mission Master Quatre because apparently something happened!!" Abdul said in a less than pleased tone. "Master Quatre….." he wagged a finger disapprovingly. "this is by far the worst thing you have ever done to us. We were worried sick about you! Allah knows where you may have ended up-" 

"I'm fine Abdul. It's only a few scratches; nothing too serious." he said walking into the kitchen a bit more. "Duo was there with me as well." 

Duo shot him a look. "Yeah I was there. I did my best but Quatre got a bit stubborn on me. Wouldn't even talk to me." 

"What about?" Rashid asked finally after a moment of silence. 

Now Quatre shot Duo a look. "It's all right Rashid, it's not that important now." 

"Yeah, 'cause ya talked to Jess about it and-" Duo was cut off by a slightly sharp elbow nudging in his ribs. 

"You talk too much Duo." he hissed underneath his breath. 

"For the love of God Quatre, I can see it as well as everyone else!" Duo said a bit exasperated 

The Maganacs looked between the two boys; the blond and the brunette were now glaring at each other. A few of them scratched their heads, sensing something they weren't too sure of. 

"That's none of your business Duo." he replied. 

"Oh sorry for caring. Jeez." Duo muttered rubbing his ribs. "I swear we'll never get back the old Quatre ever." 

"Master Quatre…are you sure that you're fine?" Rashid asked looking at him intently. 

"I am perfectly fine Rashid. Please stop worrying about me." he said. 

Rashid looked at him for a few seconds. "All right Master Quatre. Your father called from the colonies while you were gone. He wanted to talk to you." 

Quatre cringed inside; he had a good idea what his father wanted to talk about. "Thank you Rashid. What did you tell him?" 

"I told him you were 'occupied' with your appointed tasks," a light of humor came to his eyes. "and would be hard pressed to come to the phone. Was I correct in my judgment?" 

"Very Rashid. Do you still want to lecture me?" 

"I was prepared to do so but you seemed to have learnt your lesson the hard way. I suggest you go and call your father now." 

"I will." he looked around at the other Maganacs standing around the room. "I'm very sorry to have caused you any worry." 

General acceptances came from the large group, before they filed out of the kitchen, shaking their heads while commenting about the ways of teenagers. As soon as the room was empty Quatre looked over at Duo, not quite to sure what to say. 

"Hadn't you better call your father Quatre? "Duo finally said. 

"Why? I'd rather not have him lecturing me about the things I already know." he sat down in a kitchen seat heavily. "It's not as if I don't know." 

"What does he get on your case about?" Duo took a seat opposite him. "You must do the duty thing or something?" 

"More or less. Wants me to run the company, get married and all…" he paused. "but I don't want any of the things he wants for me." 

"So tell him." Duo shrugged. "He's gotta listen to you at some point." 

"You'd think that, huh? My father can be stubborn sometimes. The only reason why I am a Gundam pilot now is because of Instructor H and that my father didn't know until it was too late." 

"Gee, I wonder where you get it from then?" Duo smirked a bit. "He really won't listen to you?" 

"A good portion of the time he won't. If I want something small then yeah, but making my own decisions is 'far beyond me'. And to think he wants me to run the company." Quatre gave a sort of bitter sigh. "How can I make decisions if he insists on making them for me?" 

Duo remained silent, unsure of what to say. 

"It really does stink being rich sometimes. I wish I was normal, just like everybody else." 

"You are Quatre…just that your father seems to not really trust ya." Duo paused scratching his head. "Did you think of doing anything after the war?" 

"'I'll worry about that when I get there." Quatre sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Sorry I snapped at you earlier Duo…guess I was more nervous than I realized." 

Duo waved away his apology. "People fight and get over it." he smiled nostalgically. "Or sometimes they get even…one of the two." 

"Sounds like you've had experience there." 

"Yeah. Lots of experience it that particular department." a faint shadow crossed his face. "Anyways, since you're here and all now, I better get going. Still have that mission to take care of and it ain't gonna get done with me standing here." 

"Thanks Duo. You really didn't have to come you know." 

Duo rolled his eyes. "I stand corrected…we are going to get back the old Quatre. You must have said word at least five times. You don't have to thank me." 

"Yeah…you're right…now I have to call my father." 

"See? Justify it somehow." Duo grinned as he headed out of the kitchen. "Later Quatre!" 

"Bye." he watched Duo leave before turning back to his seat. "What must Father nag me about now?" he muttered; he could feel another headache coming up just thinking about it. 

Finally he rose, heading for the vidphone in his room. Seating himself at the desk, he dialed the number, feeling a sort of weariness settle inside. It really didn't improve when his father's face popped up on the screen. 

"Quatre, I'm glad you were able to return my call." his father said right off the bat. 

"Hello Father." he replied. "How are you doing?" 

"Fine. Did you finish those reports like I asked you to?" 

"Yes. I'll fax them tonight, if I have some time." 

There came a pause. "What happened to your face Quatre? Why is it all scarred?" 

_'I knew that was coming.'_ "I got into a scuffle. I at least made it out in one piece." 

"About time you started toughening up. You shouldn't let people walk all over you Quatre. I am very-" 

Quatre rubbed his temple, blocking out the words. _'It's the 'Time you became a man' speech all over again.'_ He nodded at all the appropriate times, making his father think that he was listening and paying attention. He only really listened and spoke up when his father raised another point. 

"I told you Father, I don't want to get married as soon as the war is over." 

"Quatre, we've been over this plenty of times before." 

_'You've been over it you mean.'_ "Father I just can't marry someone I know nothing about or don't love for that matter." 

"Quatre, love is a by-product of an arranged marriage-" 

"Listen to yourself Father…you make it sound like a business deal. By- product…I don't want it to be that way for me." he paused. "Is that all that really matters to you now? Business deals and getting the job done?" 

"Quatre, I only want what's best for you." 

"Then why are we having this conversation when you know how I feel?" he asked with a sigh. 

"Because you are young and aren't too sure what you may want out of life." 

"Not what you want for me, that's for sure." Quatre finally looked at his father. "I can make my own decisions you know. I'm not a little child anymore." 

"Quatre…we'll continue this discussion when I come down to Earth." 

"You're coming down? Why? The business is colony based. Or are you looking to expand?" 

"Yes. Earth would be a good place to start. I was thinking of holding a small function with some people. And I'm sure you'll attend seeing as you will be running the company one day." 

"Of course." he replied; those weren't the words he wanted to say. 

"Excellent. Then I shall see you in a few days." 

"Is Iria coming down too?" he asked before his father hung up; it wouldn't be so tedious if Iria was there too. "Or any other one of my sisters?" 

"No; they all decided to stay up here; they don't like the business parties. Make sure you have your suit ready for this party. I plan to have it in about two to three weeks time; before if possible." 

"Yes Father." he replied, sinking down into his chair. "I did figure I would have to wear a suit…like I always do." 

"Hm. I'll see you when I get down and then we can talk more about this." the screen went dark. 

Slowly, he pushed the button deactivating is screen. "Bye Father." 

He sat at his desk for awhile, simply looking out the window. Now he could contend with his father person to person rather than over the phone. And in a few days none the less. _'It's going to be different this time around.'_ He rose from the chair, pausing to look at the papers he needed to fax. Then he simply left them there, leaving his room silently. Wandering aimlessly through the house, he let his mind wander; _'What can I say to Father to make him see that I want such different things out of life and not the traditional things; I certainly don't want to run the company or get married. I just want to be myself.'_

"Master Quatre…are you OK?" 

Startled he looked up to see Abdul standing in front of him…outside…in the backyard overlooking the wide backyard. "I'm fine Abdul. Just a bit preoccupied that's all." 

"All right. Sorry if I was a bit harsh on you earlier on in the day Master Quatre…but you really did worry us and-" 

"It's all right Abdul. I did deserve it in a way." he paused, looking up at the sky. "Father is coming down to Earth." 

"Really?" Abdul fixed his glasses. "When is he arriving?" 

"I'm not too sure. A few days perhaps." he fell silent for a bit. "Abdul…do you think that I'm cut out for business? Or marriage for that matter?" 

"Whoa…take a step back there Master Quatre." Abdul said peering at him. "What's spurred all these questions?" 

"What do you think Father's been getting on my case about? All he ever talks about is when I inherit the family business or when I get married. I don't want either. Why can't I just worry about stuff like going to the mall or getting my schoolwork done? Why do I have to worry about net profit and loss and all that other stuff?" 

"Well…what's stopping you? You are the only Winner heir after all, but it is your life Master Quatre." Abdul shrugged. "Run it as you want to." 

"Try saying that to my father." he sighed, hands in his pockets. 

Abdul chuckled. "You have a very good point there. Well…why don't you want to do any of that stuff…barring aside that fact that you may be going through 'teen rebellion'?" 

"Maybe because I've seen far too many things to ever sit in an office all day 'happily' poring over numbers. Maybe because I want to get outside of the house more often now. Maybe because I want to see what I am really good at…besides playing the violin." 

"And this would have absolutely nothing to do with a certain black-haired friend of yours would it?" 

"Wufei?" he asked, slightly puzzled. 

Abdul gave an exasperated sigh. "No. The other black-haired friend Master Quatre." 

"Oh. Jess" he didn't reply, looking back up at the stars. 

"Is that a slight blush I see on your face Master Quatre?" Abdul asked in a slightly teasing voice. 

"It's bit chilly out here, you do realize that Abdul?" he asked with a silly sort of smile before looking at Abdul. 

"Uh-huh. Tell me about her Master Quatre. Like maybe how she pulled off that poker hand on me?" 

Quatre laughed. "I can't tell you that; I don't think I want to play her in poker, the game would be done in a minute." he paused. "What can I tell you about Jess?" 

"Starting from the top would be a good idea." Abdul offered after a few minutes silence from Quatre. "Like when you met her…or realized that she was a pilot." 

"I guess so. It was awhile before I met her really; I saw her before, walking down the street. She had come out of this shop with a couple of bags in her hands." he chuckled a bit. "Actually more like a few handfuls of bags; she went into the bookstore." 

"She likes books?" 

"Yeah; history books in particular. You know, after we found out we were both pilots, she talked for hours about ancient Rome?" 

"Hours as in…" Abdul asked, gesturing with his hand. 

"About five…six I think." he shook his head. "And I wasn't bored once. She just made it sound interesting and relevant. She's also addicted to chocolate in any form…liquid or food." 

"Is that why you keep making all those chocolates Master Quatre?" 

"Yeah." he got a sheepish sort of grin. "I tell her I buy them at the store though cause I know she'd tell me to save my time and not make her any. She likes chocolates as much as books and shopping sometimes…more or less given on her mood that day." 

"Uh-huh." Abdul nodded his head, before rocking slightly on his heels. "Go on." 

"She doesn't have favorite color at all, she just picks one for the day and wears it…she says that but she tends to wear a lot of red and jeans. Then she complains that she looks awful." 

"And what do you do? Agree with her?" 

"No. I don't see what she's going on about half the time; she always looks good. Besides, don't girls usually get mad at you if you do that?" 

"Uh-huh, a good portion of them do. If she's got a sense of humor, she'll laugh and agree with you." 

"Yeah…she's got that too. Not quite laugh out loud funny; more of a witty funny." Quatre looked over at Abdul. "Why do you want to know about her anyway?" 

"No reason." he shrugged. "She seems like a good kid. We must be careful and keep you out of trouble." 

"Yeah, if I don't run off on you guys." 

"Then you seem to find trouble yourself." Abdul chuckled. "We were just glad to see that you were all right for ourselves." 

"Hm." Quatre looked down at the sand beneath his feet. "I think I'd better call it a night now. I have all that work to do in the morning when I wake up and all." he gave a sigh. 

Abdul laughed. "You make it sound like the battle against Oz is much easier." 

"In some ways…it is." he shook his head as he headed in. "Night Abdul." 

"Night Master Quatre." Abdul said as he watched the blond boy walk into the house. 

A slight frown came upon his face and it was with this look that Rashid found him about fifteen minutes later. 

"Is something worrying you Abdul?" Rashid asked. 

He looked around to see the larger man towering over him. "Yes. Have you heard Master Quatre talk of his 'friend' Jess?" 

Rashid arched an eyebrow at the meaning of word. "You think he's going to have a problem?" 

"Yes; you know how adamant his father is about the marriage thing. Her…no. His father is what really worries me. What if Quatre defies his? It's not quite the same thing as defying us." 

Rashid remained silent for a moment. "I remember seeing Master Quatre out there on that battlefield and risking his life for us. And I distinctly remember Master Quatre telling us to go while he held off the other suits." Rashid shrugged. "It is a simple matter Abdul." 

"Rashid…" Abdul sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "These things always start off as simple matters and then they get out of control sometimes." 

~*~

Feeling his mind start to numb already, Quatre looked at himself in the mirror. _'Every bit the business man.'_ He made a slight face while removing the bit of dust on the shoulder of his suit. _'Why does Father expect me to be just like him?'_ Feet dragging slightly, he made his way down the stairs to be there by his father's side to greet the guests in the main room. 

"Quatre, you made it down just in time." his father said, seeing his son come down the stairs. "The first guests are arriving." 

"Wonderful." he said in a slightly sarcastic tone, not too mention a bored look on his face. 

"I know you don't really like these things but you have to learn to like them; they are a crucial part of business Quatre." 

"Unfortunately." he replied back in a low voice so the first entering guest couldn't hear. 

The next hour passed by in a blur of faces, some business entrepreneurs, others from the ranks of Oz itself; all he knew was that by the time the left the front foyer to begin circulating the room was that his mind was completely numb from all the prattle of business and the war. And no one would give him the time of day, seeing as how he was still a 'child'; he felt about ready to leave and try to at least enjoy himself on some level tonight. 

"I'm going to get some more punch." he said detaching himself from the group his father was currently discussing with. 

Walking up to the bowl, he slowly lifted up the dipper filling his glass. 'I swear this evening will never end.' He had just turned around when a strange emotion filled him; it felt so sad and…wretched that he found himself speechless and frozen. 

"Quatre!! Come over here!!" 

The voice got him moving again. With a sigh he made his way back to his father's side, the feeling intensifying as he made his way through the moving people. 

"Quatre," his father said as he made it through the thicket of people. "I'd like you to meet Mr. and Mrs. Orton." 

Quatre felt his grip start to loosen on the cup handle. He caught himself in time, holding the cup in two hands. Samuel looked the same as ever, faint recognition flickering in his grey eyes. _'This isn't good.'_ His gaze swung around to the bent figure by Samuel's side. Jess looked absolutely miserable, her gaze was listless, she had no life to her slight movements; her arm just hung limply in Samuel's. Her eyes met his and he could see the spirit inside her, fractured and tired; so very fractured. 

"A pleasure." he managed, shaking Samuel's hand. 

"Likewise." Samuel's voice replied with the barest hint of warmth. "My wife, Jessica." 

"Jessica." he said taking her hand and raising it to his lips. "I hope you shall enjoy yourself tonight here." 

Her gaze flickered down to his eyes again. "I'm sure I shall." her bare whisper even sounded dead. 

"So Samuel, you're a colonel in the Oz army?" Quatre's father said starting conversation. 

"Yes. I believe that you are trying to expand your business to Earth?" 

"Yes, it would be a wise move to branch out instead of having it centered in the colonies." 

"A wise move indeed." Samuel affirmed with a nod of his head. "Oz would be most interested in what services you may have to offer." 

"Colonel Orton, how about my son shows your wife around while you and I discuss business? We can go into a deal perhaps if we reach an agreement." 

Quatre looked up hiding the eager look on his face; this was too good to be true. 

A slightly unhappy look crossed Samuel's face. "Sounds like a very good idea." he released Jess' arm. "I would like my wife back Mr. Winner." 

He barely nodded his head as he took Jess' arm gently. "We'll be back." 

"And I would like to talk to you later on this evening as well Quatre." 

He barely nodded his head again as they walked away through the crowd. "How have you been Jess?" he asked in a whisper. 

She shrugged slightly, not responding, but her arm pulled his closer. 

Quatre simply guided her through the crowd, trying to find a quiet spot to talk to her; it seemed as if the sadness was simply sitting there and slowly growing inside. It was killing him to see her like this. _'The sooner I talk to her the better.'_ Finally, making sure that Samuel didn't see them, he ducked into a hallway, finding a lonely room at the end of hall. 

"Jess, what's wrong?" he immediately asked as soon as the door was shut. 

She shrugged as if not caring, but her eyes started to gleam with coming tears. 

"Look for once would you just talk to me." he looked at her. "That's all I want; I want to know why you're so miserable…even thought that's apparent." 

"I want it all to end Quatre." she whispered. "I just want it all to end. I'm tired of constantly fighting Oz, I'm tired of fighting Samuel…I'm just so tired of all of it. I fight and fight…and for what? For people to go about making the same mistakes that started this all in the first place? For not having the guts to say something to my parents that day before he showed up on the doorstep? I am just so tired of all of it Quatre." she slid down the door, resting her head on her knees, dress billowing beneath her. 

Quatre sat down in front of her down, running a hand over her hair. "He's still beating you isn't he?" 

Jess didn't respond, simply slipping off the shoulder of her dress. There was a nasty black and blue bruise on her upper arm; no wonder she had such strange sleeves on her dress. 

"I can't escape this time Quatre. The house is like a fortress…bars on the window, padlocks on the doors…he doesn't want me to ever escape. This one is for when I tried to." 

His hand went down to her face. "Jess, tell me that you can hang on for a bit." 

"Why should I bother? I am totally expendable…I would either die in the war or from all these beatings I get one day. I'm not fighting now so-" 

"I don't want to hear you talk like that Jess." he raised her head up. "Don't ever think that you are expendable." 

"But I am Quatre. I can die so easily… I don't even now some things about myself…like who my real parents are…did I have any siblings…God Quatre, it's like I have no past before being adopted. Like I was some reject that my real parents didn't want so they left me to die or something. I have no value to anyone; I may as well be no one." 

"Jess," Quatre said drawing her up. "you have to stop thinking this way; you have plenty of people who care about you. Duo does, your parents do from what you told me online…I do." 

"You're just saying that so I don't feel so miserable about myself now." 

"Jess…all I really want is for you to be happy. And I know that you're not now." he gazed deep into her eyes. "Jess, please. You asked something of me once, now I ask something of you; don't give up." 

She sighed heavily, a single tear running down her cheek. "All right. Why do you always have to go and cheer me up? Can't I be a bit depressed?" 

"No. you're not allowed to be depressed. I much prefer to see you happy." he gave her a smile. 

"I can't win can I?" she wiped away the tear. 

"No you can't sometimes." he took her arm gently again. "I'll walk you around for a bit before you have to leave again. Then I'll start planning Operation Bust-Out" 

She nodded her head with a slight laugh as they walked back into the ballroom. "Quatre?" she whispered so only he could hear. 

"Yes?" 

"Can the horse be dappled?" 

He looked down at her, seeing hope in her eyes. "Yeah, sure. Dappled." 

~*~


	12. Twelve

**Torment of Paradise**

~*~

Chapter 12

~*~

Barred blocks of sunlight fell down onto the bed, but there was no person sleeping in it. The faint sound of keys clicking echoed around the room. Jess kept her eyes glued to the laptop screen, reading avidly; this was her only link to the outside world. She had managed to convince a servant to get her computer for her, saying that she was desperately bored and would go crazy if she didn't have something to do; her bluff had worked and she was now reading up on about two weeks worth of events and happenings in the world. 

"God I should get some sleep." she muttered running a hand through her hair. "I've been up all night and haven't had anything to eat to boot." 

Finally closing down the computer, she stashed it away in its hiding place. She rose feeling all her bones protest after being in a seated position for so long. With a face of distaste, she looked around her prison. It was a nice room to be sure with its own bathroom but all she wanted to do was rip it to pieces. She had done that before and received a beating...she wasn't in the mood for another one quite yet. 

"I'll take a bath...I could use it after all." walking to the bathtub she drew herself a bath before stripping off all her loose clothes and stepping into the hot water with a slight groan; the bruises were still fading and aching. 

With a heavy sigh, she glanced up to see the heavy bars over the window. _'I don't think I can ever get out of here. He prepared far too well; no one really talks to me, the door is always locked...'_ she let her head fall against the side of the tub as she let her eyes wander around aimlessly. 

Despite the water being warm she shivered, remembering the entire fight as she was dragged here. Her voice had frozen up just seeing him standing there; it was only as she realized the car door was being shut that she was becoming a prisoner again. _'And I was so close to escaping. Damn him.'_ She gritted her teeth in anger remembering how she had jumped from the car, rolling along the ground and running away into the forest. He had hunted her down from there, for an entire two hours. She had nearly won her freedom for the second time when she doubled back to the car and started it up but he had darted into the passenger side and pulled out a gun on her. And as soon as they reached the house... 

"He'll pay for what he did one day." she muttered, shifting slightly. 

She really didn't want to dwell on all those depressing feelings that her imprisonment brought back up; they overwhelmed her when she was tossed into this very room and simply sapped all the fight out of her. _'Why did he let me come to the party with him?'_ Jess frowned up at the ceiling, wondering about the strange act that gave her back the hope she needed; she wasn't expecting Quatre to be there but was extremely glad that he was. If he hadn't talked to her, she may have just wasted away. 

"Mrs. Orton?" 

She winced at the sound of the maid voice; she'd much rather be living out on the streets again than be called that name. "Yes?" 

"Breakfast shall be served soon." 

"All right; thank you." she waited until she heard the door close again. "The only time the door opens; so I can be fed." 

Leaving the tub, she dressed quickly, slapping on the oldest clothes she had. She didn't care if she looked like the world's biggest slob at this point, she was just plain hungry. _'Let's see if he wants to have a decent breakfast today.'_ She opened the door and started walking down the hall. 

"Oh, Mrs. Orton!" it was the maid again. "We are having company today." 

She gritted her teeth. "Thank you." she stalked back to her cell. "Now I have to change into some 'decent attire'." 

Making a face she pulled down something else and put it on before leaving her cell again in a slightly huffy mood. All the servants cleared out of her way as he stalked down the stairs and into the dining room to seat herself. _'Just who the hell comes for breakfast on a Tuesday morning?'_ Frowning again once more, she folded her arms and waited patiently. 

"Mr. Winner, I am glad you could come to finalize this deal." 

Jess looked up sharply. _'Wonderful. I get to sit through tedious numbers. I really can see why Quatre doesn't like this.'_ Samuel and the elder Winner came walking into the dining room, seeing her seated at the table already. 

"You remember my wife Jessica." Samuel's voice lost some of its warm cordiality. 

"It's a pleasure to see you again Mr. Winner." she said, managing a gracious smile. _'You're not the Winner I want to see.'_

"Likewise." he seated himself at the table. "Did you enjoy yourself at the party?" 

"I did thank you; it was very...uplifting." she murmured. 

Samuel shot her a glance as he seated himself at the head of the table, sensing some other meaning in her words. "I'm sure it was a success in promoting your business on Earth Mr. Winner. Otherwise you wouldn't be here today." 

"Quite right. Now about this deal-" 

Jess did her best to tune out all the droning talk of this many and that benefit. She managed to eat her food in a decent manner; it wasn't her fault that she wasn't fed sometimes along with her beatings. She finished before them, waiting patiently; Samuel had said that she didn't leave until he was done his breakfast as well. Without eating to distract her, the conversation unfortunately reached her ears. 

"Yes, I'd say that's a fair deal. Oz and the Winner Foundation each get something out of it." Mr. Winner finally picked up his fork, looking at Jess. "Mrs. Orton, I hope that I haven't distracted your husband from you much." 

"No skin off my back." she muttered so only she could hear. 

"Mrs. Orton?" Mr. Winner asked. 

"No...not at all." she replied, a feign smile on her face. "Are you enjoying your meal Mr. Winner?" 

"Yes I am, thank you." he replied not seeing the exchanged glares between Jess and Samuel. "So how long have you to been happily married?" 

"Two years now...close to three." she said. _'And I wish every God damn day that I wasn't stuck with him.'_

"Sounds wonderful. I am hoping for the same thing for my son, you met him that night Mrs. Orton, didn't you?" 

"Yes I did. Your son is quite the gentleman Mr. Winner." she said, a small smile coming to her face. "Unlike some I know." she slid Samuel a bare glance. 

"Yes, I would hope that he was." Mr. Winner said before taking a bite of his food and swallowing it rapidly. "We did send him to the best schools available on the L4." 

Jess remained silent for a minute. 'I get the feeling he may not have wanted that.' "Really? I myself went to private schools on L2 and Earth when I was young. What are the ones on L4 like?" 

"They aren't exactly the greatest if you ask me, the curriculum was lacking a bit and-" 

Jess nodded politely, making agreement noises as he talked; at least this way leaving to her prison cell would be delayed a bit. "You don't say? Art classes? In the curriculum?" 

"Yes. Young boys should be outside, playing sports and such. Not inside playing on an instrument or putting color on paper. It is a waste of tax dollars and time." 

She simply shook her head in disbelief, not quite sure of what she was hearing. 

"Yes I know; utterly ridiculous. And he insists on spending his time doing those same things." 

"Well...perhaps in some ways that does make him him Mr. Winner." she said with a shrug. "People do need a degree of freedom to discover themselves." 'Which you do not seem to be giving him at all.' she slid Samuel a glance. "Freedom can do wonders for a person Mr. Winner, make them a better person." 

"A wimp in a matter of speaking." Mr. Winner said, before pushing away from the table. "I am sorry to have occupied so much of your time Mr. and Mrs. Orton. I really must be off, the office is expecting me at ten and I am a bit behind and all." 

"No problem Mr. Winner." Samuel said rising. "Let me show you to the door." 

Jess sat there thinking as the two men left the dining room. She knew that Quatre's father must have been a bit controlling, she had figured so when she saw Rashid beside him at the mall, but now she began to have her doubts. Never in her life had she heard such a condemnation of the arts as she had heard from Mr. Winner. She had found it difficult to sit there and stomach it; she did play the piano after all. 'Mama, if you had heard this guy...you would have so ripped into him.' She couldn't stop the small chuckle that rose up before she rose from her seat and headed to her room. 

"You think that was funny?" 

Turning around in the doorway, she saw Samuel stalk into the dining room heading over to her. She faced him calmly, looking him dead in the eye, arms crossed. "What was funny? I did make a number of comments; pick one and bitch about it." 

He grabbed her arm hard, grip tightening. "I am in a good mood today; do not provoke me." 

"Oh, Heaven forbid I should get another beating from you upon the countless others that you've given me." she glared right into his eyes before yanking away her arm. "What's another one to me huh? Or you, you little prick?" 

A sharp slap made her face whip to the side, a small trickle of blood coming from her lip. 

"I do not want your lip you insolent bitch." he snarled, wrenching her closer to him. "I suggest you take back those words." 

She simply glared at him before doing a pitiful gesture to make up for all the pain he bestowed up her for the brief time with him; she spat in his eye before bashing her head into his powerfully. He reeled back, wiping the spit out of his eye, shaking his head to clear it. Equilibrium restored he glared at her, the one eye already starting to swell into a black and blue bruise. He charged at her suddenly a fist balling up and burying itself in her stomach. She bent over double, breath knocked out of her. His hand left and she sank to her knees, trying to get her wind back; then the sharp blow knocked her in the back making her collapse to the floor. 

'You still need to learn your place do you?" he muttered angrily. "Do you?" 

She curled into a ball as a kick nestled in her stomach again and again. She simply laid there letting him think she was taking his punishment before she caught his foot and pulling up quickly, making him fall to the floor. Ignoring the massive pain in her stomach, she jumped on top of him, pummelling him in the face with her small fists. 

"You fucking no good dickless ass! I hope to God you rot in hell forever!! I hope you never find redemption for what you are and have done, you no good stinkin' bastard!!" she screamed at him as she punched almost blindly, letting her tears of rage come. "I hope you end up as scarred as him!! He didn't deserve such a thing from you, you no good fucker!!" her nails turned in gouging away flesh and skin now. "He's a good person and I hope you hurt forever what you did to him and me you asshole!!" 

Suddenly, she was flung away, the table hitting her back hard and making her finally cry out in pain. 

Samuel rose, his face a bloody mess. "So...you know the Gundam pilot do you?" his eyes narrowed with a sadistic gleam. "You think that you can defend such a traitor?" 

Her back and gut protested violently as she rose herself up and faced him squarely. "I think that you should be the one to die; not them." 

"Perhaps because you are one?" he started to advance on her slowly. 

She edged away from him, sliding along the table edge, looking into his eyes; pure cold malice and triumph gleamed there. Then he was moving, making her try to dart around the table edge but her hand was caught and yanked back so hard that she ended up on the floor. 

"I have been waiting so long to get you on something you no good scheming bitch. Now that I have you, you'll never escape here again. And your 'friends' will never see you again." he said as he started dragging her up towards her cell. "You have disobeyed me for the last time and now you will pay the price. Your laptop has been found and is gone. As for you-" he dragged her up the stairs. 

"Bite me you no good fucker." she said, trying to relieve the pressure on her head as her body slid against the steps and along the hall. "I swear I'll die before I let you get to me ever again." 

With a vicious snarl, he opened the door to her room and flung her in by her hair. "And that's exactly what will happen; you will stay in here until you rot away and only your bones are left." 

The door closed with an angered slam, leaving her in the bright light of her cell. She curled up into a small ball on the floor, tying to ignore the pain. Eventually she fell asleep, wishing to God that it would all be over soon. 

~*~

"Mrs. Orton? Mrs. Orton?" 

Groggily opening her eyes, Jess found herself looking at the face of the maid. She managed to sit up, wincing at the soreness of her ribs. "Yes? What would you like?" 

"Are you all right Mrs. Orton? I heard the...argument and I thought you might be hurt." 

Jess chuckled to herself. "I'm fine for now. You really shouldn't be here; if that bastard catches you then you'll be in for it as well." 

The maid shook her head. "He won't catch me. He's gone out for the evening and won't be back for a while. I think he went to see a doctor after the number you did on him." the girl's face broke into a smile. "And he deserved every bit of it." 

"Yes well fact aside. I don't want anyone else involved in this. Just get out of here and save yourself a beating." 

"Well here then; I found your laptop and I brought you a bit food. You have to make it last awhile because I don't know when exactly you're going to get out of here." 

"Get out of here?" she looked up at the girl as she placed the computer and food packages on the bed. "How did you know about that?" 

"I didn't; she told me she was going to get you out when she stopped by and found out that you were here." the girl said in a hushed voice. 

"She? Did this she have a name by any chance?" 

The girl shook her head. "All she said was that she knew you and she owed you a debt that she had to pay off." the girl went to the door. "By the way, my name is María." 

Jess looked at her as the door closed, amazed that someone would even try something like that after seeing Samuel's rage. Glancing out the window, she saw the sun sinking slowly into the ground. 'Sunset; just how long have I been out?' Picking herself up, she slowly sat on the edge of her bed, looking down at the stuff. 'It would be wise to put it away before he comes back and finds it.' She started moving around slowly, placing things here and there until only the laptop was left. 

"You, my little friend," she said, picking it up carefully. "you are going to sit right up there on the back of that bookshelf, behind all those books." she placed it in its spot, patting the books affectionately. "You are my link and I'm not going to lose you again." 

She gazed around the room, not too sure what she should be feeling inside. Logic said that she should worry about her precarious position here, yet she felt a strange sense of calm wash over her. A weary ache settling in her bones, she headed to the bathroom to clean up the dried up blood from her face. Resting her head against the mirror, she turned on the tap expecting the water to come rushing out; only a dry dying cough greeted her followed by one lonely drop of water. Puzzled but feeling sure, she turned to the tub, spinning the taps to full; not a single drip came out. _'He turned off the water. Wow...for once he's showing some intelligence.'_ She went back to the bed, laying down on it, staring up at the ceiling. 

"She? This 'she' couldn't be Lara could it?" she muttered to herself. "Or maybe it could be... I really don't know." 

Sighing she closed her eyes and having nothing else better to do, she went to sleep. 

~*~

_'Day number five; it seems as if the time is simply dragging on by.'_ Jess paused, looking at he words on the screen before typing away again. _'That bastard beat me again, this time for making a racket about getting some food to eat.'_ She looked over to her side; there sat a lonely Twinkie package and half empty bottle of juice, the last bits of food she had. _'Strange...I feel oddly calm here; if I die then I accept my fate. But all the things I've ever known with this sicko, has been like nothing else; not even on L2.'_ She looked out the window to the predawn sky collecting her thoughts before turning back to the keyboard. _'For starters, Duo was with me...he's the one who actually saved me more or less. I still can't remember anything before he found me that day, huddling in the alleyway, shivering, cold and terrified.'_

Standing up she stretched her muscles before pacing the room slowly, mind trying to recall her childhood and all the events that entailed it, she did have plenty of events to recall. It took her about an hour before she sat back down again. 

_'Duo...him and Solo...they took me in, kept me safe...that band of orphans became the family I never had. We had good and bad times, not as bad as being here though...and then the worst came; that disease.'_ She paused, sadly recalling the events once more. _'A lot of the other kids fell quickly, Solo tried to save them...and then he fell sick. I wish to God he hadn't told me what he did; that's what let Duo get me out of there and vaccinated.'_ She couldn't stop the tears from coming as she remembered Solo's last words to her. _' 'Whatever Duo says, listen to him.' I listened all right, right until he delivered me Noel and Akio, who became my adopted parents.'_ Even now, she could still see herself as the small child who had gone from one family to another and she hadn't wanted Duo to leave her with some people she didn't know. _'But he left me there in the end; I swear I never thought I'd see him again; I never heard from him and I thought he'd died from the virus. When I saw him again that day I nearly did beat him up; of course he laughed it off and all, but he did apologize and he was extremely glad to see me.'_ She smiled slightly. _'Now if I could just open up, get over my pride and tell-'_

She looked up sharply at a sound that came from behind her door. Shutting down her laptop quickly, she stashed it away along with the food and wedged herself in to the gap between the bed and the wall. The door swung open a few minutes later, Samuel striding in. 

"Get out here." he ordered, pointing to the spot in front of him. 

"What do I look like? A dog?" she sneered at him. "Bite me." 

"I do not have time for this bitch." he said in a severe clipped tone as he walked over, grabbed her wrist in a tight grip and dragged her out. "We're going to go for a small trip." 

"Let go of me you asshole!!" she tried to yank her hand back repeatedly. "I'm not going anywhere with you! You-" a hand sliced across her face making her sentence stop short. 

"Consider yourself lucky in this matter or else you would have died in that room." he hissed at her, eyes narrowed. 

"I would have gotten out anyways you dickless wonder." she said in a frosty voice. "I don't care if you beat me any more; I'm done with no good scum sucking bottom feeders like you." 

"Aren't we a good one to talk?" he said in a mocking voice. "We have been defeating your 'friends' all the time and as such we are going to take things into our own hands soon enough." 

"Now who's talking crazy? You're bluffing and I don't believe a single word you're saying; not that I ever would." 

His lips tightened, as he silently dragged her to the car. Opening the door, he shoved her in the back seat, slamming it shut and heading around to the diver's side. She dove for the handle, jiggling it but the door wouldn't open. 

"Yes, the door is child locked." he slammed his door with finality. "You aren't getting out of this one so easily." 

With a growl, she lunged at him, only to have a screen rise up suddenly, making her hit and squash her face. Sullenly she sunk back into her seat, rubbing her offended nose with angry mutters. Samuel gave a malicious smirk before starting up the car and driving away from the house. She stared out the window, seeing the stretches of grassy fields before they became the tress of a forest. Soon enough, the gates of a base came into view. 

"What now?" she muttered as the car jolted along. "There's no way in hell I am going to cooperate with these people. Lord knows what they have planned for me. And they'll never get anything out of me as long as I breathe." 

The door opened followed by Samuel's voice. "Get out now." 

"Make me." she spat before bracing herself against the sides of the car, fingers digging into the soft seats. 

"Don't make a scene here." he hissed. "Get out now." 

She glared at him. "I'll get out when you pry my cold dead hands from the seats, you loser." 

A small snarl came from him as he reached into the car and grabbed her legs, pulling with all his strength. She calmly let go, letting her feet strike him full in the chest. She sat on the edge of the seat, watching him with an aloof gaze as he picked himself up. His face was tense as if already pressed about something. 

"None of my friggin' business." she muttered. 

"Get moving." he ordered curtly. 

She sat there before crossing her arms and turning her face away from him; why should she make things any easier for him? A thoroughly exasperated and angered sigh came from Samuel before he grabbed her arm roughly and dragged her after him. She dug her heels in making it harder for him to take her to wherever. 

"What now?" she asked a bit testily as he stopped in front of a door. 

"You're staying in here until you get a visitor." he opened the door and thrusted her in. "Oh, by the way." 

"What? You've suddenly developed a conscience? You want to be kind and nice?" she asked in a voice dripping with sarcasm. 

"Why waste my time on you?" he sneered. "This was where I beat the crap out of your little friend." 

She watched as the door was slammed shut before she looked around the small grey room, the table and chair standing there. Slowly, she walked around to the seat, seeing the large dent in the backing from her awkward angle. Still speechless, she noticed a small stain on the ground. 

"Blood." she murmured, fingers trailing over the discoloured red spot. 

Looking around the floor she could see other spots, some far between, others close and thick. Her face steeled as the realization of what Quatre went through sank in even further than it already had; he had been beaten as much as she had been if not with more savagery. 

"No wonder you felt so guilty." she let her fingers pause there; it was as if she could feel the rage and anger of that day lingering there. "It's not your fault Quatre. It's not." 

The door flew open suddenly making her shoot up, body on the defensive. But her entire form relaxed slightly when she saw Lara walk in, Zechs following behind her and shutting the door silently. 

"What do you want?" she demanded. 

"A bit testy aren't we?" Lara asked in an amused voice. "You can relax for a bit at least. Samuel is gone for now." 

"I'll relax when I am out of here." she said, looking between Zechs and Lara. "I assume you had me brought here?" 

"No. Colonel Une is going to talk to you." Zechs replied quietly, leaning against the wall. "We felt it best to talk to you first." 

"Why?" 

"Because you are a Gundam pilot and can help us." 

Surprised, she let her guard down a bit, glancing between Lara and Zechs. "Maybe you haven't noticed, but I am in no position to help you. My first priority is to watch out for myself and not get killed; I have others who prefer me alive." 

"Oh, like Quatre?" Lara asked with a good-natured smile. 

Jess felt her face flush rapidly. "He's my friend Lara, that's all. Don't get any ideas in your head." 

"At least I have an ally here in that respect." Zechs muttered before speaking up. "I'm going to level with you Jess, it wasn't easy to convince Samuel to let you come here. All you have to do is hedge for time when Une is talking to you." 

"What's the catch here?" she looked at Zechs. "What do you guys want in return?" 

Lara cleared her throat. "All we want is for you to help us when the time comes. That's it; nothing more, nothing less." 

"Lara," she shook her head. "There's always a catch here; what is it? Tell me or I'm not going along." 

Lara sighed. "Give us a moment please Zechs?" 

"Sure. Don't be too long; we don't know when Une is coming." he said giving her a small smile before leaving the room. 

Jess looked back at Lara, speaking once the door closed. "So what's the catch?" 

Lara shook her head. "No catch here Jess. I know you may find that hard to believe but I couldn't stand to hear what the servants told me." 

Jess' eyes widened slightly. "So you did stop by. Why did you?" 

"To be honest, I didn't know you were married to that scum sucker until I found his file in the information you requested and there it was on the paper." Lara shrugged. "Why didn't you tell anybody?" 

"That's my business OK?" she said a bit defensively. "I don't need to tell you anything." 

"Jesus Christ Jessica!" she exclaimed a bit angered. "Why the hell can't you ever talk about what's bothering you? You can't be the stone fortress all the time!" 

"I prefer to keep it private if you don't mind." she said in a slightly distant tone. 

"Yeah well guess what? I tire of this attitude of yours sometimes; learn to talk once in a while!" 

"Why should I huh?" Jess asked suddenly snapping at her. "Why should I suddenly be Little Miss Mushy Mushy when I've spent a good portion of my life trying to stop these feelings inside?" Jess looked at her. "You've always grown up in luxury Lara; you want to know where I grew up? I grew up in the slums of L2 until I was nine all right? You have no idea the things that happened there so don't you dare say that I need to open up. If I had feelings then I would never stop crying." 

"You never told me that." Lara said falling back in a shocked voice. 

"Yeah, I just go around telling everyone." she said sarcastically. "I'm the poor little girl who was adopted and escaped a terrible life." she made a face. 

"I'm so sorry; I never knew Jess." 

Jess looked at Lara who simply stood there quiet and unmoving before she sighed inside. "What exactly do I have to do here?" 

"Just get yourself imprisoned." Lara said quietly. "The others will find out that you're here and come for you. Better than storming Samuel's house and getting caught." 

Jess watched as she went to the door. "Why do you care if they get caught?" 

Lara looked back at her. "Because there's gonna be a time when we need your help and theirs. Some things are too big to fight for two people alone." 

Jess remained silent for a minute before speaking again. "Lara...why did you go to all this trouble?" 

"You're my friend. I consider you that even if you don't think or feel the same." Lara paused. "I'm beginning to think you're living in denial or something." 

"Why's that?" Jess asked quietly. 

Lara simply looked at her before speaking. "Why else wouldn't you want to talk?" 

Jess watched as the door shut with a tiny whoosh. She sat in the seat gently, unsure what Lara was talking about. She also felt unsure about so many other things. The door swung open letting in Colonel Une; she'd recognize that hairdo anywhere. The interrogation was brief until she was escorted by an armed guard to a cell. The door closed with a heavy slam. Funny how the calmness she had before had evaporated away; inside she felt as black as the cell around her. 

~*~


	13. Thirteen

**Torment of Paradise**

~*~

Chapter 13

~*~

Head bent in thought, Quatre's eyes skimmed over the paper checking for any last minute details that may have escaped him. It seemed like it had taken him forever to quietly get the plans for Samuel's house and now the blueprints were filled with the white lines of a pencil. 

"Quatre?" 

Hastily he pulled over some reports over the plans before he looked up to see his father coming in to the room. "Hello Father. What can I do for you?" 

"Busy at work I see." he said with a smile. 

"Yes...all these reports to do in addition to scheduling a slew of meetings." Quatre looked away, rubbing the bridge of his nose wearily. "Is there something else you want me to do now?" 

"All I want is for you to come with me for the rest of the afternoon." 

Quatre looked at him surprised before stepping from behind the desk. "All right then. Are we going somewhere?" 

"In a manner of speaking; just come and see." 

Puzzled slightly, Quatre went falling in step beside him. Every few seconds Quatre would glance up at him. _'What could be so pressing? It must be important to take me away from the ceaseless piles of paper that Father always wants me to do.'_ Before long they entered the large airy parlor; seated there was the slight figure of a girl. 

"Miss Knight, may I introduce my son Quatre?" 

"A pleasure to meet you Mr. Winner." she said rising with a small curtsey. 

Quatre looked at her for a few moments. "Likewise." he replied with a contrived smile. 

"I shall leave you two to talk for a bit." 

Quatre glanced back at the door to see it close gently before turning back to the girl who had a simpering smile on her face. He managed a weak smile wishing he was back behind that desk he suddenly liked. 

"So....you're Quatre Winner huh?" she asked in what was supposed to be a pleasant voice. "I hear you play the violin." 

"I do." he said maintaining a distance; she reminded him too much of a predator, waiting for an opportunity to sink her claws into some hapless guy; namely a hapless rich guy. "Do you play anything?" 

"No, not me. Much too difficult." she said shaking her head vigorously. 

"Oh. Do you have any hobbies?" 

"I like to shop a lot!" an enthusiasm lit her eyes. 

Warning bells went nuts inside his head. "Really? How much is a lot?" 

"Every day!! I usually go right after school. Sometimes I don't come back until the mall closes." she giggled. 

Quatre managed to repress his shudder. "What about your homework? Don't you get that done?" 

"Sometimes." she shrugged. "It's no big deal." 

_'No...big ...deal?'_ "So what are you doing in school?" 

"Nothing much, just something on the war. I don't like it much." 

"Why not?" 

"Those Gundam pilots are ruining everything. Life would be so much better if they would just stop all that fighting. It's their fault that this war is even going on." 

"Uh...huh." he nodded his head slowly. "You think it's the Gundams fault...why is that?" 

"It's all over the news reports, they keep on destroying all those Oz bases." she looked at him with a gaze on disbelief. "Don't you watch the news Quatre?" 

"Uh...I've been extremely busy. If you don't mind Miss Knight. I have to take care of something for a minute." he said backing away towards the door. 

"All right Quatre, I can wait." 

As soon as he was outside in the hall he shut the door and rested against it. "Allah..." he closed his eyes. 

"Something wrong Master Quatre?" 

He looked up to see Ahmed looking at him, Abdul by his side. 

"Yeah, you don't look so good." Abdul peered at him. "Like you want to get out of here." his face crinkled with his chuckle. 

Quatre looked at them and then the door. "Abdul, that's exactly it. I'm gonna go crazy here." 

"Quatre...are you out there?" 

He looked back at the door. "Damn, I forgot she was in there!" 

"She?" Ahmed looked at him with a puzzled expression. "Did you finally get Miss Jess, Master Quatre?" 

"No, I'm going to leave tonight. Father brought a girl over for me to talk to." he made a face. "Not that there's much to talk of with her." 

"Ouch." Abdul made a wincing face. "Perhaps you better just end it. Sounds like she's coming to the door." 

Quatre sighed heavily as he opened the door once more walking in to see the girl halfway across the floor. 

"I was starting to wonder what happened to you." she pouted a bit. "Are you trying to ditch me or something?" 

"Listen Miss Knight-" 

"You can call me Naomi." she said with a saccharine smile. "Do you think that's a nice name?" 

"Yes, very nice. Listen Miss Knight, this will not work out at all." 

"What?" she pouted even more. "Am I too superficial or something? I can change." 

"No no, you're a very interesting person in your own way. But I could never feel anything towards you." 

"Why not?" she looked about on the verge of tears. "Am I hideous or something? Oh my God, I knew it; if the Winner heir doesn't want me, who would?!" 

Quatre groaned as the tears began sliding down her face; what a time for theatrics. "Listen Miss Knight, it's not you, it's me. I simply cannot love anyone else." 

"You don't like me!" she wailed, blubbering her eyes out. "I must be so hideous and boring!" 

Quatre sighed shaking his head as he guided her to the door. Opening it, he saw Abdul and Ahmed standing there, amused looks on their faces. "Abdul...Ahmed would you escort her back to her car and see that she is off?" 

"Of course Master Quatre." Ahmed said with a smirk. "Come along Miss. The front is this way." 

Quatre watched as Ahmed lead the crying girl away, Abdul following after, clearly trying to not laugh. _'I have had enough of this.'_ He headed back down the hallway stopping in his office and grabbing the blueprints before going to his room, taking out his duffel bag and packing it with clothes and anything else he would need to get Jess out. Just as he shouldered his bag and picked up his violin case, his father came into the room. 

"Quatre, what's going on? Naomi wasn't even here ten minutes and she's leaving in tears?" 

"That was no part of mine Father. She was just insecure about herself, that's all." 

"And where are you going Quatre? Out on a sleepover or something?" his father crossed his arms, waiting for an answer. 

"I'm going away Father. That's all." 

"And when will you be back?" 

"I don't know. Whenever I come back I suppose." 'If I ever come back.' 

"Quatre, you do not have my permission to leave this house." 

"Father...I am leaving this house whether you like it or not." he replied softly before walking out of the door. 

"Quatre, come back here; I am not done with you." his father went after him. "You cannot leave this house!" 

"And why not Father?" he asked, pausing at the bottom of the stairs looking up. "Why can't I leave? Because my 'grooming' isn't done yet?" 

"Quatre, that's not true! You must stay here; it's for your own protection!" 

Quatre shook his head before looking around, seeing some of the Maganacs and servants draw closer. Normally he would end an argument right then and there but not this time. 

"And what's so safe about these walls? They can fall like any others; they're prone to the same weaknesses." 

"Quatre, the world is a violent place. You must stay here with the safety of your family." 

"Family..." he murmured, closing his eyes momentarily. "That what we're should to have here shouldn't we?" 

"What are you talking about Quatre? We are a family." 

"A family would encourage each other to be who they are, to do their best." Quatre paused for a minute "But ever since day one, you have condemned everything I have ever wanted to do; my music...my desire to paint. Nothing was ever good enough for you unless it was something outdoors or athletic...which I really wasn't good at." 

"Quatre we only wanted what was best for you...I wanted what was best for you." his father said coming down the stairs. "Please try to see reason." 

Quatre shook his head and went to the door and opened it. "Then why do you never seem to listen to your only son?" 

"Quatre." 

He looked back at his father standing there in the foyer, looking impassive and almost cold. "Yes Father?" 

"You walk out that door and don't ever think of coming back here." 

Quatre met his eyes for a few moments before he turned. "As you wish Father." he said softly before walking out the door and shutting it behind him quietly. 

~*~

Quietly, the leaves of the bush moved aside allowing Quatre a good look at the house just up ahead. 

"How is it Master Quatre?" came Ahmed's hushed whisper from behind him. 

"Quiet." he murmured, eyes scanning for any movement in the house. "I see the servants but I'm not seeing anything else." 

"We should get closer." Abdul hissed. "We can see better and take action from there." 

"All right, just remember that it's just the three of us so don't be seen at all." 

They slid away from the screening bushes slinking closer towards the house. Quatre ducked into the back, inching closer to the door. Glancing around he saw Abdul and Ahmed take their spots behind a tree and a large patio bench. Nodding his head, he looked up seeing only dark windows. He moved along closer not seeing the glow of light anywhere before moving to and along the side. Then the side door opened suddenly, making him duck in to a shadow. 

"There, garbage done for the night." came a satisfied voice followed by hands dusting themselves. 

Peering around the corner, Quatre saw a blonde haired girl, looking up at the night sky. _'Come on.'_ He looked up at the windows anxiously before seeing the girl turn back into the house. Moving quietly, he snuck a glance into the kitchen window; no one. He motioned over the others quickly before opening the door gently. _'I wish I didn't have to do this.'_ He felt like a criminal but he ignored that particular feeling as they walked through the kitchen. 

"Master Quatre, this way." 

Glancing back he saw Ahmed and Abdul motioning him to a stairwell. They went up quickly, seeing almost no servants around. Once they reached the top floor, they peered down the hallway carefully. 

"It's like there's no one here." Ahmed said as they walked down the hall quickly. 

"Strange." Quatre murmured as they continued down the hall. 

Coming up he saw a door with a large lock on it, making him pause in front of it. "This must be the room." 

"I should say so. I've never seen so many locks on one door before." Abdul muttered. "All right, stand back and let me do my thing." he produced a pick and began working away on the locks. 

It wasn't long before the door opened before them silently and they stole in, closing it behind them. Seeing the faint shape of the light switch on the wall, Quatre flicked it on, illuminating the entire room. 

"Allah...it's almost like a prison in here." Ahmed whispered looking around. 

Quatre had to agree; the small cot standing at one end of the grey room, the tattered bookcase holding the few books in there, the closet door filled with holes and the door leading to the bathroom. But he couldn't see Jess anywhere in the small place. 

"Jess?" he called walking to the bathroom door, resting his hand in the doorknob. 

"Hello? Is someone in there?" 

The three of them whipped around as a girl's voice came through the door. "Alex, is this your idea of a joke? Get out of Mrs. Orton's room, Samuel won't be happy to know some one was in here you know." 

Running over silently, they all went into the bathroom, closing the door just as the other door creaked open slowly. They remained frozen as they saw the girl's shadow move across the floor. 

"Alex, really now, this is very silly for a grown man to be doing you do realize that right?" 

Quatre looked around for anywhere they could hide; the sparsely furnished bathroom provided not much cover. He looked down to see the knob turning slowly before looking back at Abdul and Ahmed. Ahmed pushed him in the bathtub before pulling the curtain shut before he could protest. The girl's scream, echoed around the tile covered room followed by Abdul and Ahmed's attempts to calm her. 

"Miss, wait!" he called jumping out of the tub, going out of the small room into the bedroom after her. "Where's the girl who was here?!" 

She froze at the door before looking back at him carefully. "You're looking for Mrs. Orton?" 

"Yes, we're looking for Jess. Is she here?" 

"The girl looked at him before a gasp of shock spread across her face. "Oh my God!! You're Quatre Winner!! What the hell are you doing in here like you own the place; I swear to God I'll call the police on you if you don't leave right now!! Breaking and entering is a crime you know!!" 

"Please miss, I'm just looking for Jess. Can you tell me if she's here?" he asked, giving her a pleading look. 

"If that's all you want you could have knock like a civilized person you know." she crossed her arms, frowning. 

"And Samuel would be glad to see me on the doorstep asking for Jess?" 

"True. You got me there." the girl went to the bookcase, reaching behind the books and pulling out a computer and handing it to Quatre. "I'm so sorry, she's not here Mr. Winner. She was taken away." 

Quatre took the slim black rectangle. "Where is she now?" 

The girl shook her head. "None of us knows. Samuel just came in here one day and dragged her out. We don't know where." 

Quatre remained silent, mind racing away. "Was he wearing a uniform?" 

"Yes he was." the girl paused. "May I ask how that will help you?" 

"If he was wearing his uniform, he probably went to an Oz base nearby. Where is that?" 

"The nearest Oz base?" the girl paused. "That would be about eighty miles away, due west. You think he took her there?" 

"It's very possible." he held the laptop closer. "Thank you..." 

"María." she said smiling at him. "Think nothing of it. We all think that he had it coming to him one day. Jess gave it to him good one day after your father I guess came over here." 

"That sounds like her." he paused. "What did he do to her?" 

Maria's face fell sombre. "She wrote about it...a journal she told me was helping her to keep sane in here. I don't think she'd object to you reading it." 

"Hm...Thank you María." 

"No problem Mr. Winner. If you need anything else, just come around and I'll do my best to help you." 

He nodded his head in thanks before he left the room, Abdul and Ahmed following behind him. 

"Master Quatre...perhaps we should wait until tomorrow and find her then." Abdul whispered. "It would be wise, especially if this Samuel comes back here. He won't be sure of where we went to." 

"I agree Abdul. We need to operate with stealth here." he paused. "Actually, you guys can go back. I know someone who can help." 

Ahmed and Abdul paused as they went out the back door, clearly not too happy with that idea. 

"Are you sure master Quatre? Look at what this man did to you last time you...talked with him so to speak." Ahmed said. 

"I know. That won't happen again, I promise you that." he bowed his head. "This...this is something that I must resolve myself when I find him and her." 

Understanding sighs came from the two Maganacs before they shook their heads. 

"May I ask which one of your fellow pilots will you be requesting help from? Heero?" Abdul asked rubbing the bridge of his nose. 

Quatre shook his head. "No, Duo. He's the stealth master among us. I'm sure he'll help me." 

"All right then Master Quatre. But if you need any extra help you call us all right?" 

"I will. You guys should go now. I'll be fine by myself until I meet up with Duo." 

Now slightly skeptical looks came from them as they shook their heads. 

"Master Quatre, I do believe you may enjoy going off on your own sometimes, and not worrying about the consequences of what can happen." Ahmed responded. 

"I do worry, believe me. "I'll be fine. You guys get going. And tell Rashid not to worry about me all right?" 

"Very well Master Quatre." Abdul said shaking his head. "When you see Miss Jess give her my regards will you?" 

"I will Abdul." he looked at Ahmed. "You guys be careful going back all right?" 

"And you be careful in what you're about to do Master Quatre." Ahmed admonished. "I don't like it but I get the feeling that you'd just go off anyways." 

"Love does that to people Ahmed." Abdul muttered, giving Quatre a stern look over his glasses. "No mischief Master Quatre." 

"All right. Bye guys!" he said before walking away into the shadowy night. 

It wasn't a long walk to the small place he'd managed to secure for himself for the night; it was quiet and out of the way, just what he'd wanted. Opening the door, he plunked down on the creaky old bed, turning Jess' laptop over in his hands. After looking at it for awhile, he placed it beside him on the bed before taking out his rarely used own and plugging it in. It was a few minutes later that he had sent off the message to Duo, saying he had to get here as soon as possible. He shut down his laptop and placed it on the bedside table. 

"Now what to do?" he murmured. He glanced over at the black shape of Jess' computer before he pushed the thought away. "There's still plenty to do. If she's still at the base then I'll need to get plans and security measures to be bypassed…" 

Soon enough Quatre lost himself in planning, but the thought of the laptop sat there in the back of his mind, reminding him that there was a side of Jess that he had yet to see. 

~*~ 

An insistent banging startled Quatre from his sound sleep; he hadn't even realized that he had fallen asleep. The paper littered bed should have been proof enough. Rubbing his face he went up to the door. 

"Who is it?" he called. 

"Are you still asleep Quatre? Man you tell me to get here ass soon as I can and when I do, you're still asleep!" 

Chuckling to himself he opened the door to see Duo's amused and indignant face. "Morning Duo." 

"And Wufei decides to yell at me all the time. Hmph. So why did ya want me here?" 

"Want to go to another base with me?" Quatre paused for a minute. 

"Sure. Which base are we talking about here?" 

"Remember Mitchell Base?" 

"You wanna go back there?!" Duo looked at him like he was crazy. "Why on Earth do ya wanna go back there?!" 

"Jess." he shrugged before walking back to the bed. "I think this time, she will need our help. And not just because of Samuel." 

"All right. But who exactly is Samuel? You been keeping me out of the loop or something?" Duo chuckled. 

"I guess." Quatre ran a hand through his hair. "Samuel is Jess' husband." 

"What? Come again? My…Jess is married?" Duo looked thoroughly shocked. "When did this happen?!" 

"I don't know Duo. But she hates it. She keeps on running away from him….and I don't blame her one bit." 

"Why? Did he do the same thing to her?" Duo's face suddenly went dangerous. 

"Worse I guess." Quatre shook his head. "I saw her one time, and her entire shoulder was black and blue." 

"Bastard." Duo muttered. "You're sure she's at Mitchell Base?" 

"It's the only logical assumption now. He most likely took her there and who knows what they're going to do to her." 

"They lay a hand on her and I'll see to them personally." Duo said in a tight voice before he noticed the bed. "Been preparing?" 

"Yeah. Almost done; I'm not going to go through the same thing again this time. I've been running some checks on the base and it seems as if they're still holding her there." Quatre picked up a paper. "That means we don't have much time to do this." 

"It shouldn't take much time anyways, since I'm here and all. Going in and out like we were never there right?" 

"Exactly. I just have to change and then we can go." Quatre said, grabbing some clothes from the duffel and going to the bathroom. 

"Hey Quatre…why do you have so much stuff with ya?" 

Quatre pulled the clean shirt over his head. "Father told me if I walked out the door that I shouldn't think of ever going back." 

"Ouch. That's pretty harsh." 

Sliding into his pants quickly, he came out packing away all the stuff in the duffel bag and shouldering it quickly. "All right, let's go." 

"With all that stuff? No, no Quatre; some of it's gotta go." Duo took the bag and dumped it on the bed zipping it open. "Do you really need another laptop?" he asked taking it out 

"That's Jess. It stays." Quatre placed it back in the bag. I guess some of the other stuff can go….like this and this." 

Five minutes later there was a good sized pile on the bed and a much thinner duffel bag on Quatre's shoulder. Looking at Duo he nodded his head before they walked out of the motel room. 

"It's not far to Mitchell Base. We'll walk there through the forest. Draws less attention if we're quiet." Quatre said as they headed down the street. 

"Good idea. I think there's a storage shed there by the fence. We can use that as cover to get in." Duo replied. "Besides, you're talking to the stealth master here; we'll be like ghosts." 

"Uh-huh. Then how come you always talk so much? I thought stealth was about being silent?" 

"Well to be honest…I mostly do it to annoy Wufei. But that's between you and me." 

Quatre chuckled but it vanished as they slipped into the tall trees, moving silently through the forest. It wasn't long before they reached the place by the shed. 

"Heh…looks like someone else decide to come here too and they never repaired it." Duo muttered as he moved aside the cut links and ducked in. 

Quatre looked at the shed before slipping through. "Need to find a computer console." he hissed. 

"No problem." Duo nodded his head. "Follow me and stick close." 

Holding the bag close so it wouldn't make noise, Quatre went after Duo, ducking around corners and hiding in the shadows of corners while guards passed by them. Soon enough they came to a pair of steel doors. 

"Tell me you can crack the code for this lock." Duo hissed as they went to the door. 

"Give me a minute." Quatre replied bending down at it, before hooking his computer to it. 

Silence filled the hallway as Quatre went to work, trying to decode the computerized lock. Suddenly voice came from the hallway, still faraway. 

"Quatre sorry to rush ya like this, but there are guards coming!" Duo whispered urgently. 

"Just one more." he muttered, brow beading with sweat as he typed frantically. 

The voice drew closer and closer until the red lock light went green and the door slid open. They darted inside the doors closing just as the guards turned the corner. 'That was too close for comfort.' Wiping away the sweat, he went to the computer console bringing up the prisoner records quickly. 

"You hack as good as Heero." Duo said coming over. 'How come you never told us before?" 

"You guys never asked. Besides Heero seems to enjoy hacking much more than I do." Quatre grinned. "Surprised?" 

"A bit. You always liked doing your music and whatnot." 

"Thanks Duo. I'll make sure you remember the whatnot. You can listen to me practice my violin." 

"Wonderful." Duo groaned in mock sarcasm. "Sounds like you found something there." 

"I did." Quatre looked over the screen carefully. "She's not here anymore. They relocated her somewhere else. Hang on; I'll try to find out." 

A few more silent minutes passed until another screen popped up. 

"That doesn't make any sense." Quatre murmured. 

"What doesn't?" 

"What it says here. Read." 

Duo bent over his shoulder reading quickly. "That really doesn't make any sense. Why would they do that?" 

"Quatre shrugged. "I don't know. But it means we're going there." he looked back at the screen; there was all the information. 

Prisoner Number 1675, name of Jessica, relocated to Adler Base for further training. Future Position: Bodyguard for His Excellency, Treize Khushrenada. 

~*~


	14. Fourteen

**Torment of Paradise **

~*~ 

Chapter 14 

~*~ 

_A gentle breeze swept down from the sky to the grassy flowered plains around her. She closed her eyes, savoring the feel of the wind against her skin. _

'It's so nice here. I never want to leave.' she smiled to herself as the wind blew around her, the sundress she wore ruffling with its currents. 'I could stay and always be happy.' 

She gazed around the sunny area, simply admiring the beauty all around her. Then she felt gentle arms slide around hers, holding her close as the long missing warmth returned and suffused her. She didn't say anything, her arms going around also; she was so afraid that if she turned around that he would vanish like last time and she would never know who it was that made her feel this way. 

'You're very quiet today. Is something wrong Jess?' 

'No, I'm perfectly fine.' she pulled him tighter. 'What makes you think something is wrong?' 

'It's not you to be quiet.' a gentle kiss was placed behind her ear. 

"You usually go around looking at stuff.' 

'Not today love. ' she paused, surprised at how easily the word flowed off her lips; and how natural and right it felt. 'Something tells me to take all the happiness I can here in this place.' 

'Because you'll be leaving again…won't you?' came the quiet voice, hands stroking her arms. 

'Yes.' she closed her eyes, feeling tears come. 'I don't want to. What if I can never come back here? What if I can never come back to you?' 

A low chuckle reached her ears, soothing away some of the tension inside. 'You came back here this time.' the hands glided down to her hips, encircling. 'I know you can and will come back again.' 

She sighed lightly as she reached up and caressed a face gently, hand resting on the cheek. 'It's just that I didn't come back here in almost five months, and I barely remembered. I only felt that feeling inside.' 

A pair of lips pressed against her hand, comforting and promising. 'You have to try to remember Jess. You have to.' 

'Will you remember? So when I see you one day we'll both have this same cherished memory?' 

'I will remember Jessica.' a tender kiss was placed along her jaw line, followed by another and another. 'We both have to come back to this little paradise that we built from our dreams and shared.' 

She closed her eyes as she was turned around gently, a pair of lips finding hers. She returned his kiss back with the same urgency and fervor, pressing closer to him. She reveled in the feel of his hands exploring her body as her own traveled over smooth muscling planes. 

'Never leave me.' she breathed in a whisper as he began kissing their way down her neck, her hands sliding into his hair. 

'I'll never leave you Jessica. Trust in me; I never will.' Those were the last words she heard as the world and his touch vanished away like the desert sands. 

~*~ 

"Zero five hundred hours! Get up!" 

Blearily Jess half-opened her eyes as the loud voice made the last vestiges of the dream vanish. "Fuck off." she growled before turning over and snuggling back beneath the blankets. 

"Now!" the blanket was ripped off the bed. "You forget you're still a prisoner and you have training today." 

Sitting up she glared up at the armed solider before her. "What the fuck is your problem? It's goddamn five in the morning!! Have a little decency!!" 

"Get moving." the woman replied, nudging her roughly with the barrel of the rifle. "Oz doesn't make exception for prisoners, despite their post." 

Muttering darkly to herself, she shuffled out of bed, rubbing the side of her head as she followed her large escort down the hall. _'Lord, they send eleven soldiers to escort me to one place. They either fear me or don't want me to escape.'_ Soon enough, she entered a room, seating herself gingerly as she glanced around, taking stock of the objects in the room. At one end sat a strange looking machine with a large visor hooked up to some machine, as well as sensor gloves; it looked somewhat like a video game. 

"Your instructor will be here shortly." the woman said curtly as she slammed the door shut. 

Jess simply blinked in the face of this before brushing it aside; she could piss off people if she tried sometimes; and sometimes it was just her that set some off without her knowing it. _'A là Wufei.'_ She couldn't stop the wry thought from running through her head. Rubbing her face, she sighed before slouching in the chair, gazing up at the ceiling. She couldn't stop the rush that overtook her body as she recalled the dream; this had to be the first time she could even summon a vestige of it, much less more. Eyes closing at the feeling of serenity inside, she couldn't help but remember the touch of his lips on hers, the feel of his skin sliding against her skin, smooth and slightly calloused. 

"I remember." her fingertips grazed her lips lightly as she murmured. "But I've yet to figure out who you are. How close are you to me?" 

The door flew open suddenly jarring her from her thoughts. Whipping her head back to the door, she saw a person. _'Medium height. Caucasian male. Black hair. Green eyes. Around five seven…possibly eight.'_ She gave him a scrutinizing look, confirming her rapid analysis. 

"You may wish to not look at me so; you may arouse the suspicion of your husband." he stated softly. 

She looked at him, surprised by the pleasant tenor. "What do you care? And I have never cared for his opinion. Besides as good as the chances are that this room is monitored he, as he would put it, would not waste his time on me." she snorted before sitting up properly. 

He didn't reply for a few minutes. "I am Philip. May I ask who you are?" he asked extending his hand. 

She looked at it before looking at him. "I believe you know that already; or don't you review your assignments?" she said curling her lip at the last word. 

"True." he murmured, taking a seat before her. 

Silence descended in the room as he regarded her, green eyes probing and holding her. A sort of tiredness descended over her making her fight to stay awake. She shook her head a few times, before meeting his gaze unflinchingly. Then she felt it, the perplexing stirrings in her mind. As if some one was… 

"What the hell are you doing?!" she demanded, shooting out of her seat and knocking it over. 

"You are extremely defensive for one so young. And with good reason; you have been hurt before. By someone close I sense." 

"Correction; what are you?!" she moved back as if it would give her protection. "Are you like reading my mind or something?" 

"If you prefer to see it that way." he shrugged. "I believe the question is why are you letting your talents go to waste?" 

Jess edged her way to the door, hand sliding over the knob, looking at the quietly seated man warily. 

"The door has been locked at my request. It would be much faster if you simply sat and we had a civil talk." 

"Civil? There's something I have never seen from Oz." she mumbled. "Why are you so nice anyhow?" 

"I don't believe in brutalizing people to obtain answers unlike your husband." he paused at her pale face. "Everyone in Oz knows of you and him now. It seems as if he and Lara are engaged in a battle of some sorts presently." 

"Lara told everyone?" she whispered. 

Philip nodded his head before gesturing to the seat. She came and sat down heavily, hands resting on the table. _'How dare she?'_ her nails dug into her palms slowly. _'I would never dare tattle of her business.'_

"Are you all right Miss Jessica?" Philip asked bending forward. 

Jess didn't reply immediately, trying to get a grip on herself. "I…am…fine." she managed in a tight voice. 

"Obviously not. I see blood." 

Glancing down, she saw crimson trickling from the creases of her palms before she opened them, the bright red crescents standing out against the white of her flesh. "It's nothing." she said quietly, closing her hands again and drawing them closer to her as she stared at them. 

Philip didn't say anything, simply regarding her again intently. Jess' head snapped up, anger lashing through her; just what the hell was going on? It definitely felt like someone was inside her head again. And she focused her thoughts on expelling it, wanting it out immediately. 

Philip drew back, wincing slightly. "Point taken and noted; I shall not try again." 

Jess simply regarded him, unsure of exactly what was occurring in the room. 

"So you are a Gundam pilot are you?" he chuckled when Jess remained stoically silent. "Samuel told us. I didn't pry that information from you." 

"Then I have no need to confirm that answer do I?" she paused. "And may I ask just what are you?" 

"I am a special pilot brought in from the Pacific to train the recruits." he bowed his head slightly. "As well as any additional training required and requested." 

"Oh how kind of them." she said sarcastically. "Are you here to train me by any chance?" 

"My, such venom." he said, clucking his tongue. "Perhaps we should get down to business now?" 

"And what are we going to be doing sensei?" she gave him a mocking bow. "Playing video games to while away the time?" "Did you get enough sleep? Perhaps that is why you are cranky." he shrugged. "Remind me to let the guards know that you are to sleep until eight from now on. In any matter that is exactly what you are going to do." 

She watched as he walked over the console and activated the machine, holding out the visor and gloves to her. "A video game?" 

"More or less; depends what you call a video game." Rising, Jess looked at it with an air and expression of apprehension. "I don't think so." 

"I have no intentions upon your person if that is what you fear." he said. 

"If you did, you'd be dead before you got anywhere." she said in a deadly tone. 

"Are you so sure of that?" he asked. "Perhaps you underestimate my strength." he offered the visor and gloves once more. "Besides, when you play it I must leave for a few minutes." 

She plucked them from his hand uneasily. "I'll put them on when you leave." 

"As you wish." he shrugged, heading for the door. "It is exactly like a virtual reality game so this should be no problem for one your age." 

Jess simply watched as he rapped on the door and it opened a few minutes later. _'This is some sort of test to determine my abilities.'_ She turned the visor over in her hands looking at it. _'I'd better play it cool for now.'_ She slipped on the cool plastic easily before her hands slithered into the gloves the plastic bumps of the receptors pressing against her skin. 

The visor activated a few minutes later. _'Stage one; eliminate all the enemies in your sight. Do not injure any civilians or points will be deducted.'_ A gun materialized in her hands. 

Jess nearly laughed; this was so like an arcade game and she knew that this would be a joke, even if she had to do terribly at it. The minutes passed away as she balanced out the levels, making it appear that she was a mediocre shot. She really did feel like laughing out loud. 

_'Stage twenty-eight; rescue the child and deliver him safely to the mother. Any civilians injured results in deducted points.' _

Hearing those words, Jess balked slightly, before cocking the gun and going through the level; except this time she failed it much worse than all the others. 

_'Game over. Total points: 2023.'_

Jess removed the visor, wiping away the loose hairs that clung to her forehead. _'That was pathetic; I could have had a score of 8000 and up. I'm so gonna have to make that up later some time.'_ She pulled the gloves off before placing the equipment back on the console and going back to her seat. 

"Well…you did your best Miss Jess." Philip said as he entered the room again, a piece of paper in his hand. "Would you care to see your results?" 

"No." she looked away, feigning shame. "I know I did so badly. Are you just going to lock me up now and leave me to die?" she could only hope for that; it would be her one chance. 

Philip looked at her for a few seconds before he switched off a button on the wall. "Let me tell you something Miss Jess." 

She looked up at him, even more wary; the pleasant tone from before was gone. "What?" 

"Your act may fool others but it doesn't deceive me. I know you deliberately threw away that session. Your score should have been well above 9000, maybe even 10,000 even." 

"I don't know what you're talking about." she stated, head held high. 

"Don't you?" his eyes suddenly grew hard. "Well you better understand this. I know you are perfectly capable of protecting His Excellency and that's exactly what you are going to do. You will receive more training to enhance what you already know and then you will be sent to the colonies to be His Excellency's bodyguard." 

"And if I don't? What then?" 

Philip shook his head with a clear sense of regret. "I believe Noel and Aiko will be paid a visit." 

"You wouldn't dare touch them." she said angrily, giving herself away unconsciously. 

"I wouldn't; but Samuel wouldn't be past hurting them if you fail to cooperate. Your training will commence tomorrow and should be finished by then; you should pick up quickly." 

Jess looked up at him. "This doesn't mean I have to like you." 

Philip sighed and went to the door rapping on it. "I wasn't expecting you to." he replied as the door opened. "The prisoner can return to her cell now." 

Jess watched as the guards came back into her cell, motioning for her to rise and head back. She did so numbly, trying to make sense of it all. Once she was in her cell she rested her head against the wall at the foot of her bed. 

"Damn fucking bastards." she cursed, smacking a fist into the wall. "Damn fucking Samuel. I hope he…" she trailed off, unable to find a proper word for what she wanted to have happen to him. "Calm down Jess…just calm down…" she took a couple deep breaths. "when you get out of here, you can beat the crap out of him and feel so much better in the end." 

She let herself fall back onto her bed, the ancient springs creaking in protest. She let her breath become slower and slower until she was totally calm. Then her eyes fell shut as she felt the warmth wash over her again at the mere thought of her dream. 

"I remember." she whispered softly, words barely heard. "Please say you do to." 

~*~ 

"Now we are going to do this one more time and I expect that you will succeed!" Philip said in an irritated voice. "Now hit me damn it!!" 

Jess shook her head. "This is gonna hurt." she muttered as she reeled back before sending her fist smashing into his jaw and knocking out his knees with a sweeping low kick. He fell to the floor and before he could even get up, she had a blade pressed to his jugular. "Happy?" 

"Yes; much better." he murmured appreciatively. "I knew you could do it with ease." 

"Hm." she rose. "How nice to see someone has faith in me and my 'talent'." 

Philip regarded her as he picked himself up. "I would say that you have completed your training." 

She kept her eyes glued to her blade as she turned it over in her hands, noting how the light reflected off of the edges. "What now? You ship me off to God knows where?" 

Philip paused at her calm and quiet voice. "You will be leaving for Colony X-18999 at twenty one hundred hours." 

"Colony X-18999." she sheathed back the dagger on her hip. "Why is he there?" 

"That isn't your business; you simply have to protect him. That is all." 

Jess looked at Philip for a few seconds. "And what do I do now?" "You go back and get a uniform before you leave." 

"I don't do uniforms" she crossed her arms. "They'll hamper me. You want me to protect this guy don't you?" 

"I suppose you don't really need a uniform. But we have to visit the armory and get you equipped." he went to the door, holding it open. "Shall we go now?" 

"Hm. What time is it now?" 

"Twenty hundred hours. You shall have enough time to equip and reach the shuttle. Why, were you expecting something to happen?" 

She didn't respond, simply walking out the doors, the guards falling in step around them. Twisting hallways led from one to another, sloping downwards gently until the came to a large steel door, bars going into the walls. A brief talk with the sentries followed by the flashing of authorization badges and the bars slowly withdrew from the wall allowing the door to swing open. 

"Wait out here." Philip said to the guards. "We'll call when we're ready to leave." 

The guards nodded curtly, the door closing back silently. Jess looked around as if in a daze; stockpiled here was virtually every single weapon that she had ever dreamed about. Rifles, handguns, grenades, detonators… _'Heero would love this place.'_ She wandered down an aisle looking at the shelves of weaponry; if only the others had such an arsenal at their disposal… 

"You'll need a few basics such as handguns and knives perhaps…" Philip started down another aisle. "This way Miss Jess." 

She followed him slowly, the amazement shaking off as a sobering thought came to her. _'How many of these weapons were used to kill innocent people who may have only wanted peace?' _

"Here, you can use this…this and…" he stopped seeing the strange look on her face. "Is something wrong Miss Jess?" 

She shook her head. "Nothing is wrong sensei." she took the offered weapons strapping them on quickly. "What else?" 

Philip looked at her silently for a few minutes. "Just a few more things and then you'll be on your way." 

She nodded curtly following after him and taking the occasional offered weapons and strapping them on slowly. The feeling that she should stall for as much time as she possibly could started to envelope her, causing her to slow down her motions. Even when Philip told her it was time to leave, she dragged her feet prolonging the moment. They walked out the door swinging shut before the bars thudded into place and they headed back up to ground level. She looked around at the armed guards surrounding her and Philip as they walked down the hall, the end drawing inexorably closer; and she saw two figures waiting for her at the end. 

_'God, I just wish that this hadn't happened.'_ She shook her ead looking around at the turnoffs that she couldn't escape down. And then she caught a flash of blond hair and aqua green eyes from around a corner. _'Quatre?!'_ Her head turned as she continued walking to see him peer around the edge, helpless frustration on his face. And close behind was Duo's violet eyed face, looking none too pleased as well. How she would have like to simply break away from the guards and run to Quatre and get out of there… 

"Hey you, keep on moving." a guard said nudging her with the butt of his gun when she suddenly stopped. 

"Why the hell are you people sending me to X-18999, huh? Just so you can get me out of the way?" she demanded, whirling to face Philip. 

"I told you already Jess, His Excellency is there and it s your-" 

"Don't give me that bullshit. The real reason why you're shipping me up to X-18999 is to get me out of your goddamn way." she scowled darkly. "You people are so dead once this war is over, threatening my parents to get what you want…no friggin' shame that's what if you ask me…" 

"Are you scared of space Miss Jess?" Philip asked in a calm voice. "We can give you a sedative if need be." 

"I am not scared of space, sensei." she said curtly. "I just think what you're doing here is a farce." 

"And you know the risks. Keep on moving Miss Jess." 

She gave him a glare before continuing on glancing back at Quatre and Duo. She looked away hastily before she seemed out of place. Silent now, she continued on to the end, seeing Lara and Zechs standing there. 

"We'll take over from here." Zechs said in a quiet voice. "You are dismissed from your duties Sergeant Philip." 

Philip nodded slightly. "I'm sure I'll have the pleasure of seeing you again, Miss Jess." he murmured before turning around and walking away. 

Jess didn't say a word, just walking stiffly into the docking area and boarding the plane, Lara and Zechs behind her. Seating herself in the comfortable seat by the window, she gazed out as Lara took the seat beside her. 

"Hey Jess. I'm sorry I wasn't able to get you out sooner or prevent this." 

She didn't answer her, simply looking out the window as the shuttle started forward. There by the corners she could see Duo and Quatre, conversing to themselves as they hid in the shadows, looking and pointing at the shuttle. Jess placed a hand against the cold glass, seeing Quatre's eyes meet hers from so far away, captivating with the raw emotion she saw in them. Choking back a small sob, she managed to keep her coming tears under control. Shaking her head, she finally tore her gaze away from his, staring intently at the back of the seat. 

"I'll come and get you Jess; I said I'd never leave you.' 

Startled Jess looked around surprised to hear Quatre's voice in her head. _'How could he do or know that? It was only said in my dream…'_ She felt a helpless sort of rage build inside; she should get herself out of here, and there was Quatre and Duo coming after her; and as if that wasn't bad enough, if she failed to cooperate there was the extremely strong chance that Samuel would do something to her parents. Leaning forward, she began clenching and unclenching her hands in a vain effort to diffuse away the feelings inside. 

"Damn it!" she muttered as she punched the back of the chair in front of her hard. 

"Calm down Jess." Lara said in a hushed voice. "You should buckle up now, we're taking off." 

"Don't you talk to me; I have no desire to talk to you, even in the most remote way possible." she said in a tight voice, looking out the window once more. 

She could feel Lara's mournful gaze on her before she stood and moved to the seat ahead silently. Jess buckled herself in quickly, as the shuttle stopped at the runway. The ground bled into a blur as the shuttle picked up speed, heading for the vastness of space. Once they reached the starry expanse, she looked out the window to see the blue curvature of the Earth. Glancing at the seats ahead of her, she saw Zechs and Lara conversing quietly between themselves. With a dismissive noise, she looked out the window again, unable to deny that space had a beauty about it that Earth couldn't capture. 

_'If you guys do come up here after me, be careful about what you do.'_ she shut the window blind with a heavy sigh before closing her eyes. _'Things are going to happen up here….but they have yet to take shape.'_

~*~ 

"Right this way Miss Jessica." 

She followed the butler hesitantly, feeling slightly intimidated by the lavishly decorated hallway. She had finally arrived on X-18999 and was immediately whisked off by a high security escort to a mansion. Now she was heading to the drawing room to meet this slightly reclusive Treize Khushrenada. 

"He is waiting for you in here Miss Jessica." the man said, pausing outside the carved door. 

Not replying she walked in, seeing a ginger haired man seated placidly in a chair, the sword at his side grazing the ground slightly. She closed the door behind herself before taking a stand a few feet inside, a wary distance away. 

"You're more than welcome to take the other seat here." he said, gesturing to the chair beside him. 

"I'll stand thank you." she said in a slightly stoic voice. 

"Very well, as you wish. I am-" 

"Yeah I know, Treize Khushrenada. Everybody acts like your God or something." she shrugged. "So I was…forced into this position for your best interest by others." 

"Namely, your husband started this all for you didn't he?" Treize regarded her. "How old are you?" 

"That's irrelevant. I have a job to do." 

"Hm…you may think so, however my men tend to not wish any harm befall me. Even the questionable ones like your husband." 

"He is not my husband." she managed in a tight voice, perplexed slightly by the strange look in his eyes. 

"Your jailer then?" Treize regarded her for a few moments. "I hear you attended school with Lieutenant Barrask." 

"Big deal; it was better when we moved." she paused. "For someone who has to run an army, you seem to know a good deal about my life." 

"I believe it would be imprudent to not know who has been assigned to protect me. Despite Colonel Une's best…endeavors I know there's something afoot concerning her." he paused. "For all I know you could have been placed here as a spy to kill me eventually." 

Jess remained silent for a few minutes. "Look on the bright side; if I was and if I could, your death would be quick." 

"How very comforting." he said with a slight bow. "It seems as if you also believe in doing things as quickly and painlessly as possible. Now there will be many tasks for you to for I do travel between Earth and the colonies." 

Listening patiently, Jess absorbed all the things Treize told her as her mind puzzled over Treize's words. _'He knows the Colonel Une is up to something. Is this the thing Lara spoke of?'_ she started chewing her lip, thinking it over. _'Just what has Lara and Zechs gotten me into here?'_

~*~ 


	15. Fifteen

p**fix the italics**  
  
bTorment of Paradise center~*~ uChapter 14 center~*~ iA gentle breeze swept down from the sky to the grassy flowered plains around her. She closed her eyes, savoring the feel of the wind against her skin.   
  
p'It's so nice here. I never want to leave.' she smiled to herself as the wind blew around her, the sundress she wore ruffling with its currents. 'I could stay and always be happy.'   
  
pShe gazed around the sunny area, simply admiring the beauty all around her. Then she felt gentle arms slide around hers, holding her close as the long missing warmth returned and suffused her. She didn't say anything, her arms going around also; she was so afraid that if she turned around that he would vanish like last time and she would never know who it was that made her feel this way.   
  
p'You're very quiet today. Is something wrong Jess?'   
  
p'No, I'm perfectly fine.' she pulled him tighter. 'What makes you think something is wrong?'   
  
p'It's not you to be quiet.' a gentle kiss was placed behind her ear.   
  
p"You usually go around looking at stuff.'   
  
p'Not today love. ' she paused, surprised at how easily the word flowed off her lips; and how natural and right it felt. 'Something tells me to take all the happiness I can here in this place.'   
  
p'Because you'll be leaving again…won't you?' came the quiet voice, hands stroking her arms.   
  
p'Yes.' she closed her eyes, feeling tears come. 'I don't want to. What if I can never come back here? What if I can never come back to you?'   
  
pA low chuckle reached her ears, soothing away some of the tension inside. 'You came back here this time.' the hands glided down to her hips, encircling. 'I know you can and will come back again.'   
  
pShe sighed lightly as she reached up and caressed a face gently, hand resting on the cheek. 'It's just that I didn't come back here in almost five months, and I barely remembered. I only felt that feeling inside.'   
  
pA pair of lips pressed against her hand, comforting and promising. 'You have to try to remember Jess. You have to.'   
  
p'Will you remember? So when I see you one day we'll both have this same cherished memory?'   
  
p'I will remember Jessica.' a tender kiss was placed along her jaw line, followed by another and another. 'We both have to come back to this little paradise that we built from our dreams and shared.'   
  
pShe closed her eyes as she was turned around gently, a pair of lips finding hers. She returned his kiss back with the same urgency and fervor, pressing closer to him. She reveled in the feel of his hands exploring her body as her own traveled over smooth muscling planes.   
  
p'Never leave me.' she breathed in a whisper as he began kissing their way down her neck, her hands sliding into his hair.   
  
p'I'll never leave you Jessica. Trust in me; I never will.'   
  
Those were the last words she heard as the world and his touch vanished away like the desert sands. center~*~ p"Zero five hundred hours! Get up!"   
  
pBlearily Jess half-opened her eyes as the loud voice made the last vestiges of the dream vanish. "Fuck off." she growled before turning over and snuggling back beneath the blankets.   
  
p"Now!" the blanket was ripped off the bed. "You forget you're still a prisoner and you have training today."   
  
pSitting up she glared up at the armed solider before her. "What the fuck is your problem? It's goddamn five in the morning!! Have a little decency!!"   
  
p"Get moving." the woman replied, nudging her roughly with the barrel of the rifle. "Oz doesn't make exception for prisoners, despite their post."   
  
pMuttering darkly to herself, she shuffled out of bed, rubbing the side of her head as she followed her large escort down the hall. i'Lord, they send eleven soldiers to escort me to one place. They either fear me or don't want me to escape.'/i Soon enough, she entered a room, seating herself gingerly as she glanced around, taking stock of the objects in the room. At one end sat a strange looking machine with a large visor hooked up to some machine, as well as sensor gloves; it looked somewhat like a video game.   
  
p"Your instructor will be here shortly." the woman said curtly as she slammed the door shut.   
  
pJess simply blinked in the face of this before brushing it aside; she could piss off people if she tried sometimes; and sometimes it was just her that set some off without her knowing it. i'A là Wufei.'/i She couldn't stop the wry thought from running through her head. Rubbing her face, she sighed before slouching in the chair, gazing up at the ceiling. She couldn't stop the rush that overtook her body as she recalled the dream; this had to be the first time she could even summon a vestige of it, much less more. Eyes closing at the feeling of serenity inside, she couldn't help but remember the touch of his lips on hers, the feel of his skin sliding against her skin, smooth and slightly calloused.   
  
p"I remember." her fingertips grazed her lips lightly as she murmured. "But I've yet to figure out who you are. How close are you to me?"   
  
pThe door flew open suddenly jarring her from her thoughts. Whipping her head back to the door, she saw a person. i'Medium height. Caucasian male. Black hair. Green eyes. Around five seven…possibly eight.'/i She gave him a scrutinizing look, confirming her rapid analysis.   
  
p"You may wish to not look at me so; you may arouse the suspicion of your husband." he stated softly.   
  
pShe looked at him, surprised by the pleasant tenor. "What do you care? And I have never cared for his opinion. Besides as good as the chances are that this room is monitored he, as he would put it, would not waste his time on me." she snorted before sitting up properly.   
  
pHe didn't reply for a few minutes. "I am Philip. May I ask who you are?" he asked extending his hand.   
  
pShe looked at it before looking at him. "I believe you know that already; or don't you review your assignments?" she said curling her lip at the last word.   
  
p"True." he murmured, taking a seat before her.   
  
pSilence descended in the room as he regarded her, green eyes probing and holding her. A sort of tiredness descended over her making her fight to stay awake. She shook her head a few times, before meeting his gaze unflinchingly. Then she felt it, the perplexing stirrings in her mind. As if some one was…   
  
p"What the hell are you doing?!" she demanded, shooting out of her seat and knocking it over.   
  
p"You are extremely defensive for one so young. And with good reason; you have been hurt before. By someone close I sense."   
  
what are you?!" she moved back as if it would give her protection. "Are you like reading my mind or something?"   
  
p"If you prefer to see it that way." he shrugged. "I believe the question is why are you letting your talents go to waste?"   
  
pJess edged her way to the door, hand sliding over the knob, looking at the quietly seated man warily.   
  
p"The door has been locked at my request. It would be much faster if you simply sat and we had a civil talk."   
  
p"Civil? There's something I have never seen from Oz." she mumbled. "Why are you so nice anyhow?"   
  
p"I don't believe in brutalizing people to obtain answers unlike your husband." he paused at her pale face. "Everyone in Oz knows of you and him now. It seems as if he and Lara are engaged in a battle of some sorts presently."   
  
p"Lara told everyone?" she whispered.   
  
pPhilip nodded his head before gesturing to the seat. She came and sat down heavily, hands resting on the table. i'How dare she?'/i her nails dug into her palms slowly. i'I would never dare tattle of her business.'/i   
  
p"Are you all right Miss Jessica?" Philip asked bending forward.   
  
pJess didn't reply immediately, trying to get a grip on herself. "I…am…fine." she managed in a tight voice.   
  
p"Obviously not. I see blood."   
  
pGlancing down, she saw crimson trickling from the creases of her palms before she opened them, the bright red crescents standing out against the white of her flesh. "It's nothing." she said quietly, closing her hands again and drawing them closer to her as she stared at them.   
  
pPhilip didn't say anything, simply regarding her again intently. Jess' head snapped up, anger lashing through her; just what the hell was going on? It definitely felt like someone was inside her head again. And she focused her thoughts on expelling it, wanting it out immediately.   
  
pPhilip drew back, wincing slightly. "Point taken and noted; I shall not try again."   
  
pJess simply regarded him, unsure of exactly what was occurring in the room.   
  
p"So you are a Gundam pilot are you?" he chuckled when Jess remained stoically silent. "Samuel told us. I didn't pry that information from you."   
  
p"Then I have no need to confirm that answer do I?" she paused. "And may I ask just what are you?"   
  
p"I am a special pilot brought in from the Pacific to train the recruits." he bowed his head slightly. "As well as any additional training required and requested."   
  
p"Oh how kind of them." she said sarcastically. "Are you here to train me by any chance?"   
  
p"My, such venom." he said, clucking his tongue. "Perhaps we should get down to business now?"   
  
p"And what are we going to be doing sensei?" she gave him a mocking bow. "Playing video games to while away the time?"   
  
"Did you get enough sleep? Perhaps that is why you are cranky." he shrugged. "Remind me to let the guards know that you are to sleep until eight from now on. In any matter that is exactly what you are going to do."   
  
pShe watched as he walked over the console and activated the machine, holding out the visor and gloves to her. "A video game?"   
  
p"More or less; depends what you call a video game."   
  
Rising, Jess looked at it with an air and expression of apprehension. "I don't think so."   
  
p"I have no intentions upon your person if that is what you fear." he said.   
  
p"If you did, you'd be dead before you got anywhere." she said in a deadly tone.   
  
p"Are you so sure of that?" he asked. "Perhaps you underestimate my strength." he offered the visor and gloves once more. "Besides, when you play it I must leave for a few minutes."   
  
pShe plucked them from his hand uneasily. "I'll put them on when you leave."   
  
p"As you wish." he shrugged, heading for the door. "It is exactly like a virtual reality game so this should be no problem for one your age."   
  
pJess simply watched as he rapped on the door and it opened a few minutes later. i'This is some sort of test to determine my abilities.'/i She turned the visor over in her hands looking at it. i'I'd better play it cool for now.'/i She slipped on the cool plastic easily before her hands slithered into the gloves the plastic bumps of the receptors pressing against her skin.   
  
pThe visor activated a few minutes later. i'Stage one; eliminate all the enemies in your sight. Do not injure any civilians or points will be deducted.'/i A gun materialized in her hands.   
  
pJess nearly laughed; this was so like an arcade game and she knew that this would be a joke, even if she had to do terribly at it. The minutes passed away as she balanced out the levels, making it appear that she was a mediocre shot. She really did feel like laughing out loud.   
  
i'Stage twenty-eight; rescue the child and deliver him safely to the mother. Any civilians injured results in deducted points.' pHearing those words, Jess balked slightly, before cocking the gun and going through the level; except this time she failed it much worse than all the others.   
  
i'Game over. Total points: 2023.'pJess removed the visor, wiping away the loose hairs that clung to her forehead. i'That was pathetic; I could have had a score of 8000 and up. I'm so gonna have to make that up later some time.'/i She pulled the gloves off before placing the equipment back on the console and going back to her seat.   
  
p"Well…you did your best Miss Jess." Philip said as he entered the room again, a piece of paper in his hand. "Would you care to see your results?"   
  
p"No." she looked away, feigning shame. "I know I did so badly. Are you just going to lock me up now and leave me to die?" she could only hope for that; it would be her one chance.   
  
pPhilip looked at her for a few seconds before he switched off a button on the wall. "Let me tell you something Miss Jess."   
  
pShe looked up at him, even more wary; the pleasant tone from before was gone. "What?"   
  
p"Your act may fool others but it doesn't deceive me. I know you deliberately threw away that session. Your score should have been well above 9000, maybe even 10,000 even."   
  
p"I don't know what you're talking about." she stated, head held high.   
  
p"Don't you?" his eyes suddenly grew hard. "Well you better understand this. I know you are perfectly capable of protecting His Excellency and that's exactly what you are going to do. You will receive more training to enhance what you already know and then you will be sent to the colonies to be His Excellency's bodyguard."   
  
p"And if I don't? What then?"   
  
pPhilip shook his head with a clear sense of regret. "I believe Noel and Aiko will be paid a visit."   
  
p"You wouldn't dare touch them." she said angrily, giving herself away unconsciously.   
  
p"I wouldn't; but Samuel wouldn't be past hurting them if you fail to cooperate. Your training will commence tomorrow and should be finished by then; you should pick up quickly."   
  
pJess looked up at him. "This doesn't mean I have to like you."   
  
pPhilip sighed and went to the door rapping on it. "I wasn't expecting you to." he replied as the door opened. "The prisoner can return to her cell now."   
  
pJess watched as the guards came back into her cell, motioning for her to rise and head back. She did so numbly, trying to make sense of it all. Once she was in her cell she rested her head against the wall at the foot of her bed.   
  
p"Damn fucking bastards." she cursed, smacking a fist into the wall. "Damn fucking Samuel. I hope he…" she trailed off, unable to find a proper word for what she wanted to have happen to him. "Calm down Jess…just calm down…" she took a couple deep breaths. "when you get out of here, you can beat the crap out of him and feel so much better in the end."   
  
pShe let herself fall back onto her bed, the ancient springs creaking in protest. She let her breath become slower and slower until she was totally calm. Then her eyes fell shut as she felt the warmth wash over her again at the mere thought of her dream.   
  
p"I remember." she whispered softly, words barely heard. "Please say you do to."   
  
center~*~ p"Now we are going to do this one more time and I expect that you will succeed!" Philip said in an irritated voice. "Now hit me damn it!!"   
  
pJess shook her head. "This is gonna hurt." she muttered as she reeled back before sending her fist smashing into his jaw and knocking out his knees with a sweeping low kick. He fell to the floor and before he could even get up, she had a blade pressed to his jugular. "Happy?"   
  
much better." he murmured appreciatively. "I knew you could do it with ease."   
  
p"Hm." she rose. "How nice to see someone has faith in me and my 'talent'."   
  
pPhilip regarded her as he picked himself up. "I would say that you have completed your training."   
  
pShe kept her eyes glued to her blade as she turned it over in her hands, noting how the light reflected off of the edges. "What now? You ship me off to God knows where?"   
  
pPhilip paused at her calm and quiet voice. "You will be leaving for Colony X-18999 at twenty one hundred hours."   
  
p"Colony X-18999." she sheathed back the dagger on her hip. "Why is he there?"   
  
p"That isn't your business; you simply have to protect him. That is all."   
  
pJess looked at Philip for a few seconds. "And what do I do now?"   
  
"You go back and get a uniform before you leave."   
  
p"I don't do uniforms" she crossed her arms. "They'll hamper me. You want me to protect this guy don't you?"   
  
p"I suppose you don't really need a uniform. But we have to visit the armory and get you equipped." he went to the door, holding it open. "Shall we go now?"   
  
p"Hm. What time is it now?"   
  
p"Twenty hundred hours. You shall have enough time to equip and reach the shuttle. Why, were you expecting something to happen?"   
  
pShe didn't respond, simply walking out the doors, the guards falling in step around them. Twisting hallways led from one to another, sloping downwards gently until the came to a large steel door, bars going into the walls. A brief talk with the sentries followed by the flashing of authorization badges and the bars slowly withdrew from the wall allowing the door to swing open.   
  
p"Wait out here." Philip said to the guards. "We'll call when we're ready to leave."   
  
pThe guards nodded curtly, the door closing back silently. Jess looked around as if in a daze; stockpiled here was virtually every single weapon that she had ever dreamed about. Rifles, handguns, grenades, detonators… i'Heero would love this place.'/i She wandered down an aisle looking at the shelves of weaponry; if only the others had such an arsenal at their disposal…   
  
p"You'll need a few basics such as handguns and knives perhaps…" Philip started down another aisle. "This way Miss Jess."   
  
pShe followed him slowly, the amazement shaking off as a sobering thought came to her. i'How many of these weapons were used to kill innocent people who may have only wanted peace?' p"Here, you can use this…this and…" he stopped seeing the strange look on her face. "Is something wrong Miss Jess?"   
  
pShe shook her head. "Nothing is wrong sensei." she took the offered weapons strapping them on quickly. "What else?"   
  
pPhilip looked at her silently for a few minutes. "Just a few more things and then you'll be on your way."   
  
pShe nodded curtly following after him and taking the occasional offered weapons and strapping them on slowly. The feeling that she should stall for as much time as she possibly could started to envelope her, causing her to slow down her motions. Even when Philip told her it was time to leave, she dragged her feet prolonging the moment. They walked out the door swinging shut before the bars thudded into place and they headed back up to ground level. She looked around at the armed guards surrounding her and Philip as they walked down the hall, the end drawing inexorably closer; and she saw two figures waiting for her at the end.   
  
i'God, I just wish that this hadn't happened.'/i She shook her ead looking around at the turnoffs that she couldn't escape down. And then she caught a flash of blond hair and aqua green eyes from around a corner. /i Her head turned as she continued walking to see him peer around the edge, helpless frustration on his face. And close behind was Duo's violet eyed face, looking none too pleased as well. How she would have like to simply break away from the guards and run to Quatre and get out of there…   
  
p"Hey you, keep on moving." a guard said nudging her with the butt of his gun when she suddenly stopped.   
  
p"Why the hell are you people sending me to X-18999, huh? Just so you can get me out of the way?" she demanded, whirling to face Philip.   
  
p"I told you already Jess, His Excellency is there and it s your-"   
  
p"Don't give me that bullshit. The real reason why you're shipping me up to X-18999 is to get me out of your goddamn way." she scowled darkly. "You people are so dead once this war is over, threatening my parents to get what you want…no friggin' shame that's what if you ask me…"   
  
p"Are you scared of space Miss Jess?" Philip asked in a calm voice. "We can give you a sedative if need be."   
  
p"I am not scared of space, sensei." she said curtly. "I just think what you're doing here is a farce."   
  
p"And you know the risks. Keep on moving Miss Jess."   
  
pShe gave him a glare before continuing on glancing back at Quatre and Duo. She looked away hastily before she seemed out of place. Silent now, she continued on to the end, seeing Lara and Zechs standing there.   
  
p"We'll take over from here." Zechs said in a quiet voice. "You are dismissed from your duties Sergeant Philip."   
  
pPhilip nodded slightly. "I'm sure I'll have the pleasure of seeing you again, Miss Jess." he murmured before turning around and walking away.   
  
pJess didn't say a word, just walking stiffly into the docking area and boarding the plane, Lara and Zechs behind her. Seating herself in the comfortable seat by the window, she gazed out as Lara took the seat beside her.   
  
p"Hey Jess. I'm sorry I wasn't able to get you out sooner or prevent this."   
  
pShe didn't answer her, simply looking out the window as the shuttle started forward. There by the corners she could see Duo and Quatre, conversing to themselves as they hid in the shadows, looking and pointing at the shuttle. Jess placed a hand against the cold glass, seeing Quatre's eyes meet hers from so far away, captivating with the raw emotion she saw in them. Choking back a small sob, she managed to keep her coming tears under control. Shaking her head, she finally tore her gaze away from his, staring intently at the back of the seat.   
  
p"I'll come and get you Jess; I said I'd never leave you.'pStartled Jess looked around surprised to hear Quatre's voice in her head. i'How could he do or know that? It was only said in my dream…'/i She felt a helpless sort of rage build inside; she should get herself out of here, and there was Quatre and Duo coming after her; and as if that wasn't bad enough, if she failed to cooperate there was the extremely strong chance that Samuel would do something to her parents. Leaning forward, she began clenching and unclenching her hands in a vain effort to diffuse away the feelings inside.   
  
p"Damn it!" she muttered as she punched the back of the chair in front of her hard.   
  
p"Calm down Jess." Lara said in a hushed voice. "You should buckle up now, we're taking off."   
  
p"Don't you talk to me; I have no desire to talk to you, even in the most remote way possible." she said in a tight voice, looking out the window once more.   
  
pShe could feel Lara's mournful gaze on her before she stood and moved to the seat ahead silently. Jess buckled herself in quickly, as the shuttle stopped at the runway. The ground bled into a blur as the shuttle picked up speed, heading for the vastness of space. Once they reached the starry expanse, she looked out the window to see the blue curvature of the Earth. Glancing at the seats ahead of her, she saw Zechs and Lara conversing quietly between themselves. With a dismissive noise, she looked out the window again, unable to deny that space had a beauty about it that Earth couldn't capture.   
  
i'If you guys do come up here after me, be careful about what you do.'/i she shut the window blind with a heavy sigh before closing her eyes. i'Things are going to happen up here….but they have yet to take shape.'/i   
  
center~*~ p"Right this way Miss Jessica."   
  
pShe followed the butler hesitantly, feeling slightly intimidated by the lavishly decorated hallway. She had finally arrived on X-18999 and was immediately whisked off by a high security escort to a mansion. Now she was heading to the drawing room to meet this slightly reclusive Treize Khushrenada.   
  
p"He is waiting for you in here Miss Jessica." the man said, pausing outside the carved door.   
  
pNot replying she walked in, seeing a ginger haired man seated placidly in a chair, the sword at his side grazing the ground slightly. She closed the door behind herself before taking a stand a few feet inside, a wary distance away.   
  
p"You're more than welcome to take the other seat here." he said, gesturing to the chair beside him.   
  
p"I'll stand thank you." she said in a slightly stoic voice.   
  
p"Very well, as you wish. I am-"   
  
p"Yeah I know, Treize Khushrenada. Everybody acts like your God or something." she shrugged. "So I was…forced into this position for your best interest by others."   
  
p"Namely, your husband started this all for you didn't he?" Treize regarded her. "How old are you?"   
  
p"That's irrelevant. I have a job to do."   
  
p"Hm…you may think so, however my men tend to not wish any harm befall me. Even the questionable ones like your husband."   
  
p"He is not my husband." she managed in a tight voice, perplexed slightly by the strange look in his eyes.   
  
p"Your jailer then?" Treize regarded her for a few moments. "I hear you attended school with Lieutenant Barrask."   
  
p"Big deal; it was better when we moved." she paused. "For someone who has to run an army, you seem to know a good deal about my life."   
  
p"I believe it would be imprudent to not know who has been assigned to protect me. Despite Colonel Une's best…endeavors I know there's something afoot concerning her." he paused. "For all I know you could have been placed here as a spy to kill me eventually."   
  
pJess remained silent for a few minutes. "Look on the bright side; if I was and if I could, your death would be quick."   
  
p"How very comforting." he said with a slight bow. "It seems as if you also believe in doing things as quickly and painlessly as possible. Now there will be many tasks for you to for I do travel between Earth and the colonies."   
  
pListening patiently, Jess absorbed all the things Treize told her as her mind puzzled over Treize's words. i'He knows the Colonel Une is up to something. Is this the thing Lara spoke of?'/i she started chewing her lip, thinking it over. i'Just what has Lara and Zechs gotten me into here?'/i   
  
center~*~ /center 


	16. Sixteen

vbTorment of ParadiseuChapter 16pJess sat at the table, taking out her knife carefully before she started to sharpen it. The soft ring of steel filled her ears as she watched the gleam of the metal in the light from the lamp. Every once in a while she would glance up to see Treize working away at his desk, apparently unperturbed by her presence in the room.  
  
i'At least it's nice and quiet in here.'/i She tilted her head to the side, making the glint shift with her. i'How many more hours until we have to go out there to the crowd?'/i A glance up at the clock told her it was twelve in the afternoon. 'Half an hour to go…wonderful.' She rose, sheathing back the sharpened blade.  
  
p"Treize," she said. 'you should be leaving now; it's almost time for your speech."  
  
pHe glanced up at the clock before pushing aside the papers and rising. "It would appear so Miss Jessica."  
  
pShe walked to the door, holding it open for him, following after him silently.  
  
p"There you are Your Excellency." Une's silky voice reached her. "I was starting to think that perhaps you may have forgotten about your speech to the people today."  
  
p"No I have not Lady Une." he replied graciously. "In fact I am on my way right now. So if you shall allow me to pass…"  
  
pShe stepped aside with a small bow, leaving his way free. Jess slid Une a narrow glace as she passed by; she saw the light in Une's eyes that had died out once Treize had passed her. 'Murderous intent almost…' she chewed her lower lip nervously.  
  
pA few minutes later, they were in the car, heading towards the Brava Vida Hotel. Feeling the anxiety grow stronger, Jess began to recheck her weapons.  
  
p"This is the fifth time you've done that today." Treize said with light tone. "Is something troubling you?"  
  
p"No Treize." she murmured, not really hearing the question. "Nothing at all."  
  
pHe looked at her before he chuckled slightly. "How you remind me of my dragon…"  
  
p"Pardon?" she glanced up at him puzzled momentarily. "Did you say something?"  
  
pHe shook his head, gazing out of the window. "Your actions betray you Miss Jessica. You know something is going to happen as well as I do."  
  
p"Then jolly good for you Treize." she put the gun back in its holster. "Anything can happen at an event of this size and magnitude." she took out another dagger and began to check it over, testing the edge.  
  
p"Yes, I know that." he paused. "Some things happen for the better or the worse. It's all dependant on how we interact with one another."  
  
p"Hm." she replied, resting the flat against her fingers. "For every action, there is a reaction…"  
  
p"Exactly. Who knows what the reaction will be to my speech today…perhaps someone will try to kill me before I can deliver it, perhaps not."  
  
p"Roulette." she murmured, sheathing back the blade. "So many chances…"  
  
p"May I use you as an example?" he asked. He closed his eyes as she gave a curt nod in acknowledgement. "You're a Gundam pilot correct?"  
  
p"No shit Einstein." she muttered slightly cross; she didn't like where this was headed already.  
  
pA slightly displeased look crossed his face before he continued. "Have you made choices you felt to be wrong or right; have they ever been clear cut or mixed? Have you ever experienced indecision on the battlefield?"  
  
pJess remained silent for a few minutes. "I go through the same things as everyone else, just on a more different level. We all face indecision, doubt, ineptitude-"  
  
p"Fear of rejection perhaps?"  
  
p"That as well." she fell silent momentarily. "But that is the path of the solider, of the warrior. No one expects to find companionship along its rocky road, in any form really. Maybe no one wants to…"  
  
p"Really?" he looked at her rather fixedly. "And what if you found it Miss Jessica; what then? Would you still want it?"  
  
pShe shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm not the person to be asking about companionship Treize. My outlook on life is far from rosy. So very far…I think I may be too…cynical sometimes to ever find someone."  
  
p"Quel dommage[1]." he murmured softly.  
  
p"If it wasn't for that tone in you voice I'd accuse you of mocking me." she muttered. "The way things go in my life, it's better to not become too involved with someone." 'And I even screwed up my own philosophy damn it.'  
  
p"Perhaps you should drop the cynicism and try to be yourself once in a while. Maybe you'll find that fate is all in your head."  
  
p"Drawing on experience from your 'dragon' a bit there?"  
  
pJess blinked in surprise as a slight flush spread across Treize's face. She hadn't expected to hit something in him in a million years…  
  
p"One…could say that." he replied after clearing his throat.  
  
p"Hn. If there's one thing I've heard Treize, it's that you shouldn't drop your guard like that. But my life taught me to never drop my guard; at any given time."  
  
p"So you're forever defensive; how can you live like that?"  
  
p"Quite easily." she replied shortly. 'One develops a complex mask to hide themselves. A complex and steely mask albeit.'  
  
p"I see it as a shame how you exist in the world then. With so much around you to experience and you're so young as well…"  
  
p"What? Cause I act all cold?"  
  
pA sad sort of light came into Treize's eyes. "Because you are trapped within yourself."  
  
pJess didn't respond, simply meeting his gaze for a few minutes before she turned to look out the window. 'He doesn't know what it was like for me growing up; he can't pass judgment on me like that…' But try as she might to ignore or not acknowledge them, deep down inside she knew there was a truth to Treize's words that she could never change.  
  
pThe rest of the car ride was silent as neither spoke again. Even when the car pulled up into the hotel driveway in the back of the building, they never uttered a single word, walking into the building in complete silence.  
  
pJess glanced up in time to see a small redheaded girl come barreling towards Treize. He picked her up with a laughing smile before hugging her.  
  
p"How have you been Maimai?" he asked. "Been behaving for your mother I hope?"  
  
p"Oh yes she has; despite the shuttle ride here." a woman said as she walked up. "Is this your bodyguard?"  
  
p"Yes. Leia, Miss Jessica. Miss Jessica, my wife Leia."  
  
p"A pleasure to meet you." Jess said offering her hand. "I gather that's your daughter?"  
  
that's our little Maimai. Very energetic; all throughout the flight she kept going and talking to people. Not that they talked to her much." Leia replied.  
  
p"A shame. They would ignore a child?"  
  
p"Most of them; only one person talked to her. Nice young man by the name of Beckett. He was busy but he took the time."  
  
p"Nice to see there's some kind people left in the world…" she murmured softly. "If you excuse me Mrs. Khushrenada, I'll have to take away your husband now."  
  
p"No problem. Come along Maimai, we'll find good spots for daddy's speech." Leia took her from Treize. "I'd say you're in good hands dear. We'll see you afterwards."  
  
pJess watched as Leia and Maimai walked away before she looked back at Treize. "Your wife huh?"  
  
p"So who's the dragon; a friend?"  
  
pTreize looked at her. "Are you implying something here?"  
  
p"You tell me. If I am so cold, wouldn't it give me a sort of objectivity, so to speak?" she asked sliding on a pair of shades.  
  
p"Hm. Perhaps too much for your own good." he murmured before he started down the hall.  
  
p"Say what you want. But since I have no idea of the full situation I won't pass any opinions on you Treize." she replied falling in step beside him.  
  
p"How very generous of you Miss Jessica." he replied in a slightly mocking tone of voice.  
  
pJess simply smirked as they walked down the guarded hallway, heading for the podium outside. 'Never would have pegged him as a man to have an affair.' She schooled her face into a stoic expression as they walked outside into the bright sunlight. The cameras flashed with their bright bulbs, blinding to the unprotected eye, the live cameras swinging round to catch them. 'How glad I am I remembered the last time and got these.' Treize walked up to the podium amidst a cheering crowd while Jess took her spot just behind him, eyes, scanning the crowd for the first sign of trouble.  
  
p"Well well…" she murmured under her breath seeing some figures in the crowd.  
  
pThere was Lara and Zechs in plain clothes, blending into the crowd seamlessly; she almost overlooked them. Behind them off to the side, was Samuel in the same guise, only talking into a walkie-talkie. 'Hmph. He's in charge of security? That's gonna go to pot; he'll mess that up in a second.'  
  
pAs Treize started his speech, the large crowd hushed, silence spreading all around. His words passed in and out of Jess' ears though; she couldn't afford to listen to him and have something slip her notice. The crowd ate up everything Treize had to offer, the faces turning serious and contemplative of what he was saying to them. Her eyes shifted up to the building tops, looking for any foreign shapes there. Finding nothing, she went back down to another sweep of the crowd. The anxiousness inside intensified sharply without warning, causing her to shift slightly. She looked around the crowd again; nothing.  
  
p"Shit." she cursed, seeing a figure up on the roof of a building crouched down over something.  
  
pThe faint gleam of a lens caught the sunlight as Jess whipped out her own gun and fired making the crowd shift suddenly as they realized something was wrong. Amongst the screams and fleeing people, she saw the figure go down, with a sharp satisfying jerk. Her eyes casted around the rooftops, spying one more figure that she felled just as quickly. Then she spotted another directly behind Treize, causing her to stand up and point dead at it. Just as she was about to pull the trigger, a heavy person tackled her down the steps and to the ground.  
  
p"What the hell?! Let me go!!" she struggled against the person violently; she could have sworn she heard another gun shot in the noise. "Treize needs- "  
  
p"You aren't going anywhere…traitor."  
  
pHer entire body froze at the sound of Samuel's voice for a split second before she resumed her struggles to push him off of her. "Let me go you baka, someone's trying to kill Treize!! Don't you know what that means?!"  
  
p"I know exactly what it means bitch." he growled. "Let it happen."  
  
pHer eyes widened in shock as the realization sank in. "Oh my God…it's you…you're trying to-"  
  
pHe pressed a hand over her mouth, effectively silencing her. "And we'll succeed this time…with no interference from you or anyone else."  
  
pStill muffling her mouth, he dragged her away to an alleyway in the general chaos that still ensued. She bit down savagely on his hand making him yelp and draw it away quickly. She drew away quickly but he yanked her back hard, her body slamming against the brick wall before he slapped her hard across the face once.  
  
p"Don't you dare hit me; haven't you learned that by now. Or do you need another lesson?"  
  
p"Ass! When will you learn?" she snarled.  
  
pHis hand closed around her throat as he looked at her with a strange gleam in his eyes. Immediately her mind screamed at her to get out of there but it appeared that Samuel would have none of it.  
  
p"Maybe, it's time you finally learned just what I can do to you 'dear'." he said the last word mockingly. "What we never did on our wedding night…"  
  
p"You wouldn't…" she whispered. "You wouldn't dare…"  
  
p"Are you scared?" he grasped the neckline of her shirt. "You should be."  
  
pJess' scream mingled with the others as another gun report echoed out over the crowd. She tried to punch Samuel with her fist but he caught it with a sadistic smirk.  
  
p"Not very ladylike." he said with a cluck of his tongue.  
  
p"And what makes you a man?" she hissed back, her struggles borne from fear now.  
  
pHer upper chest felt cold from where he'd ripped the material of her shirt away, exposing her thin lacy bra. The look in his eyes never left, but only intensified making her fight harder.  
  
p"Perhaps I should have done this sooner; then you wouldn't be so defiant now." he murmured, hand trailing down to her chest heavily.  
  
p"Stop Samuel, I don't want you to do this to me." she pleaded, voice faltering as she realized a nightmare was about to become reality. "Please, stop this…"  
  
p"Too late." he said, fingers digging in viciously into her breast.  
  
pTears sprang to her eyes, but she refused to shed them and let him win. She ignored the pain he caused and continued fighting until he slapped her again, the lining of her cheek shredding against her teeth. She managed to punch him in the face again, until he drove a knee into her stomach. Breathless, she slid to the ground along the wall before sprawling to the dirty asphalt to catch her breath, unable to defend herself any more.  
  
p"Oh God no…" she managed to whisper as he jumped on top of her.  
  
pShe fended him off weakly, stomach still protesting against his last attack. She felt the last of her shirt being ripped away then his hands were on her bra before a voice stopped him.  
  
p"Take your hands off of her."  
  
pManaging to pull her herself to the side, she saw an unfamiliar figure standing before Samuel. i'Lord…somebody else sees my humiliation…'p"And just what are you going to do about it?" Samuel sneered, picking himself up and standing before the black haired guy.  
  
p"I'll beat you up again. And much worse this time." came the tight response.  
  
p"Again? Ha, I've never seen you before in my life, you moron."  
  
p"Let' see if you remember this then."  
  
pJess managed to pick herself up watching as the guy launched himself at Samuel. "This guy…he looks…familiar…" she watched as he beat Samuel to a pulp before finally stopping.  
  
p"Are you all right Jess?" he asked, standing up and looking at her.  
  
pShe stepped forward slowly, unsure of what she was seeing. "Quatre…is…that you?"  
  
it's me." he reached forward and closed her jacket. "Sorry if you didn't recognize me. I didn't want him to." he motioned towards Samuel. "Let's get out of here while they're still confused."  
  
pShe nodded her head as they disappeared down the opposite end of the alleyway, onto the other main street, free from the chaos on the other.  
  
p"Quatre?" she asked in a quiet whisper.  
  
p"Yes Jess?"  
  
p"Please…don't tell anyone what you saw."  
  
pHe looked down in to her eyes for a few moments before he pulled her close. "All right Jess…I won't. I'll take you back to your parents all right? Duo's there with them. He'll look out for you…until you get back on your feet."  
  
p"Thank you Quatre." she sighed, leaning into him.  
  
pHe paused for a moment, thinking over her words. "I said I'll never leave you."  
  
pA feeling of dread settled in her stomach as she stood before her parents' door. What could she possibly say this time around?  
  
p"Jess…are you OK?"  
  
p"Yeah…I'm fine Quatre…just…I'm fine." she replied in a hesitant voice.  
  
p"Hey…it'll be all right, don't worry; I'll stay if you want me too."  
  
pShe gave him a smile before she reached out with a trembling hand to knock on the door. Quatre stilled her hand with his own as he knocked for her. She fell silent, as he let their hands fall. Her heart started to pound as he still held hers gently in his. She glanced at him meeting his aqua green eyes before she gave a shaky sort of smile. He gave her hand a gentle reassuring squeeze as the door opened slowly.  
  
pStanding in the doorway was Noel, intimidating as ever with his height. She looked up at him. "Hi Papa. I was…in the neighborhood and I…I thought I'd drop in."  
  
pNoel's eyes flickered to their linked hands, a frown forming in his face. "Uh huh; and who is this young man with you?"  
  
p"Quatre Winner Sir." he said, offering his hand.  
  
p"Quatre Winner huh?" there was a dry tone to Noel's voice as he shook it. "You certainly don't look like him."  
  
p"I dyed my hair Sir."  
  
p"Quatre, Jess." they looked behind Noel to see Duo standing in the hallway. "I think you two better come in here and see what's on the news."  
  
pNoel stood aside so they could walk into the house. Jess led Quatre down the hallway to the living room, where Aiko and Adrian sat glued to the TV. There in the screen was the event that happened at Brava Vida. She saw herself, firing away at the unseen assailants until she finally went for the one right behind Treize before she was tackled to the ground, just as the assassin fired.  
  
p"Oh my God…it looks like I shot Treize…" she whispered in horror.  
  
p"Jess-chan!!" Aiko turned and rose quickly, going to hug her daughter tightly. "You're safe!! I was so worried about you!!"  
  
p"I'm fine Mama." she replied wincing slightly. "Quatre here got me out of there in time."  
  
p"Quatre?" she drew back puzzled. "This young man here?"  
  
p"Yes. Not that it was easy to get back down here." she said softly.  
  
p"I would imagine so Jessica. You do realize that you can't hide so easily now. It'll be even harder for you now than it was before." Noel said standing behind them.  
  
p"That bastard knew…he set me up for the fall…it all makes sense now…that fu…damn bastard…" she cursed. "I swear I'll have his head for this one."  
  
p"Jess-chan…do you mind me asking who?" Aiko asked.  
  
p"Samuel." she said in a tight voice.  
  
p"Samuel? Why on Earth would he do something like that to you?" Noel demanded. "Is there something you're not telling us Jessica?"  
  
pShe fell silent, gathering up what little courage she had left now. "Yes, there is. Can we go and talk in the parlor…alone?"  
  
p"Why do that?" Duo said, herding Adrian out of the living room. "Come on Quatre; let's see if we can find something to do in the meanwhile."  
  
pJess flashed him a grateful look before she turned to her parents, nervousness running through her.  
  
p"So what do you need to talk to us about?" Aiko asked seating herself on the couch again.  
  
p"About Samuel…about that thing called a marriage." she said softly as she sat in the spot that Aiko was patting beside her.  
  
p"What about it?" Noel asked seating himself beside her.  
  
p"I…it…" she faltered, unsure of what to say.  
  
p"Take your time Jessica and talk when you feel ready." Noel said with a gentle smile. "We'll listen to what you have to say in full."  
  
pJess nodded her head. "You see…I never thought he would be like this at first…he was…civil and polite and nice…so when you said I was going to marry him; I thought it wouldn't be so bad…but…" she tightened her hands on her knees.  
  
pFeeling a gentle touch on her shoulder, she found herself looking at Aiko's smiling face. All the things that she had wanted to say to them for so long came tumbling out in a rush. The initial fear and pain of loneliness, the fear of disappointing them, wanting to make them proud of her, wanting to be a daughter they could be proud of before it took a darker twist descending down rapidly into the tales of almost ritual abuse suffered from Samuel's hands. By the time he finished everything she had to say, her eyes, were red-rimmed and bloodshot from staying awake for so long, the clock that had once read nine p.m. now saying four a.m. The early morning room was filled with silence as Noel and Aiko sat there in shock, absorbing everything she had told them.  
  
p"Jessica…why didn't you tell us this before?" Noel asked in a hushed voice.  
  
pShe shrugged weakly. "I figured…that I could get away…get a divorce and then tell you…I never wanted to disappoint you guys. I...I only…I only wanted to-"  
  
p"Jess-chan." Aiko hugged her tightly. "You've never disappointed us at all. Made us angry and worried yes, but you could never do that to us. We only wanted you to be you and happy; nothing more."  
  
pJess sighed, blinking rapidly. "I know Mama…but I thought it would be better that way…you and Papa would see for yourself and…"  
  
p"Jess…just how badly has he hurt you?"  
  
pJess pulled down the neck of her shirt showing Noel the livid dark black and blue bruise on her upper collarbone. "It goes lower…but modesty prevents me from showing it to you."  
  
p"How did he do that?" Noel's voice was tight with anger.  
  
p"He slammed me into a wall." she paused hearing Aiko gasp. "And then he…then he…I'd rather not talk about it." she fell silent for a moment, not saying anything. "Mama…you said that you wanted me to be happy."  
  
p"Yes…that's all we have ever wanted for you Jess-chan." Aiko stroked her hair gently. "My poor baby….you're never going back to him again."  
  
p"Mama…can you tell me about my past? Like before you adopted me? Before I was brought here?" she looked expectantly at Aiko then Noel. 'I need to know myself at least before I can open up to others.'  
  
pFor the first time she saw them hesitant to tell her something. They suddenly grew restless and unsure. She peered into their faces to see uncertainty lingering in their eyes.  
  
p"All right then; why can't you tell me, since you don't seem to be very forthcoming in the direct department."  
  
p"To be honest Jessica…we don't really know anything about your past before you came to us. You know that Duo brought you here to us right?" Noel replied with a weary sort of sigh.  
  
p"Then I would say ask him." Noel rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Your mother and I have always wondered when you'd ask us this question; we figured when you'd be twenty or something…guess the time came sooner than expected."  
  
p"Ask Duo…" she murmured. "I…I want you to know, no matter what you two will always be my futaoya[2]."  
  
pNoel smiled, hugging her. "And you'll always be our reijou[3]. Now I think you've had a pretty full day, so go upstairs and sleep. Besides you're probably dead tired now, ne?"  
  
p"I am. Oyasumi nasai[4]…ai shiteru." she murmured, giving each of them a kiss on the cheek before she headed upstairs to her room and sinking into the much needed warmth of her own soft bed.  
  
pOpening her eyes slowly, Jess blinked in the face of the sunlight streaming into her room. She burrowed back beneath the covers, trying to escape it and go back to sleep. She felt languid and heavy with thrumming content.  
  
p"I don't recall the blinds being open…" she muttered into her pillow.  
  
p"I opened them."  
  
pShe pulled back the covers slightly to see Duo seated on the window alcove gazing outside, a serious look on his face. "You know if I wasn't used to you doing this I would scream bloody murder for you to get the hell out of here."  
  
p"Hm." he continued looking out of the window. "You slept all day."  
  
p"What? Yeah right; what time is it?" she asked, pulling her head back beneath the covers. "Twelve or two?"  
  
p"More like five...six in the afternoon. Heard you didn't sleep until four in the morning. Must have been a doozy of a thing to say."  
  
p"Yeah well…some things take a long time." she sat up on the edge of the bed, rubbing her face. "If you don't mind I do need to change and all…"  
  
p"Noel and Aiko said you wanted to talk to me…about you past."  
  
p"So you want to do this now? Jeez, let me get changed and eat something first; then we'll talk." she pointed to the door.  
  
pDuo shook his head. "I can't. I should have told you this from day one, despite what you told me…maybe I did indulge you too much sometimes…"  
  
p"What? What are you talking about? What did I tell you?"  
  
p"To not tell you, even if you did ask…I should have…it would be much easier to do it then instead of going through this now."  
  
p"All right then Duo…" she headed for the door. "I'm going to go and brush my teeth…if you don't mind."  
  
p"Jessica, this is serious. Would you please just sit and listen to me. Please?"  
  
pShe stopped at that, turning around to face him. '…trapped within yourself.' Treize's words echoed in her head, taunting her with the sting of their meaning. Steeling herself, she closed the door and leaned against it, arms crossed; suddenly she found herself fearful of what she was going to hear.  
  
p"All right; start shooting Duo." she muttered.  
  
p"OK...do you remember back when we were kids and all?"  
  
p"How much do you remember?"  
  
p"I remember you taking me to Noel and Aiko…I remember the epidemic on L2...the streets again...the church with Father Maxwell and Sister Helen... when we were on the streets for the first time...beyond that...I have no clue."  
  
p"Do you remember when I found you?"  
  
I remember that." she said with an involuntary shiver passing through her.  
  
p"So you want to know about before all of that?"  
  
pShe remained silent for a few minutes. "Yes...I do."  
  
p"You don't sound too sure Jess." Duo paused. "I mean I figured it was for the best maybe that you forgot...you wouldn't have to go through it all over again...so I never told you...that and you told me not to."  
  
p"When I was how old? Three? Four? Five?" she lapsed in to a brief silence. "I want to know now Duo."  
  
p"All right then." he sat on the edge of the bed, running a hand through his bangs lightly. "I can't tell you much about your parents...I didn't know them very well. We did grow up together; you've been there with me from the start..."  
  
p"Go on." she said quietly, staring out of the window.  
  
p"We were happy once in life I guess...I can't remember anything of our childhood except the bad parts on the streets." he paused, lost in sad nostalgia. "Sorry. Anyways...when we were about three...four I guess...your parents died in a car crash...they died and we got stuck in a foster home."  
  
p"A car crash..." her face twitched slightly. "foster home....sounds like a bad TV movie or something like that..."  
  
pDuo gave a small snort. "We were at the foster home...but we couldn't stand it. So we left one night. Simply walked out and disappeared into the colony."  
  
p"You mean to tell me that an adult simply let us walk out into the night like that." she muttered derisively. "Some responsible adult."  
  
p"Yeah that thought occurred to me too. We were on the streets for a year and then something happened."  
  
p"You...got hit by a car when you ran across the road; it wasn't serious or anything life threatening." he paused looking at her face. You just had to have the damn apple you saw. Who was I to stop you...I never should have let you go and steal it."  
  
p"I was hit by a car...then what?"  
  
p"After I grabbed you and ran, I took you back to the hideout...and then you kinda pushed away from me and ran. I still can't figure out why you did that." he scratched his head. "Maybe you didn't recognize me right away...maybe you were confused...but you ran away and I couldn't find you for three weeks..."  
  
p"And that's when you found me in the alleyway..."  
  
pHe nodded his head. "You let me take you back then and you've been with me ever since until I took you to Noel and Aiko. You were lucky they took you in."  
  
pJess paused for a moment, mind racing. "Because of that epidemic...you got me out of there because of it...didn't you?"  
  
p"Yes. I wasn't about to sit by and watch you die like Solo did. I wanted to get you the hell out of there and he agreed with me; I was very glad to might I add."  
  
p"I never wanted to leave Duo! I wanted to stay; why would you do that to me? Maybe it would have been better if I had died there, who knows. But I didn't want to leave you and the others!"  
  
p"It was for your safety that we agreed to get you out of there; me, Solo and the rest of the guys."  
  
p"Always my safety; didn't you guys ever think about yourselves for once?! I did the exact same things you did; why the hell did you treat me like a special case!?"  
  
p"Because you're a girl Jess!!" he exploded. "Sorry to sound like Wufei here, but when you're a girl on the streets, things are three times more dangerous for you than they are for guys!! You have no strength on the streets!! IT was too risky for you to even be there as long as you were!"  
  
p"Do you think I cared about the risk?! I knew that just as well as the next girl who was out there. But, no: 'We have to look after Jessica; she's a girl.' " she said the last part in a mocking voice. "Damn it Duo, how do you think I felt to see you walk away like that, huh?"  
  
p"How do you think I felt?! I had to find decent people for you to stay with! I didn't like it anymore than you did, but I did it cause it had to be done."  
  
p"It had to be done; you mean you made the decision without and for me. You just said 'Up and at 'em!' one day and the next thing I knew, I was here!! " she scowled at him. "I swear the only thing keeping me from maybe slapping you is the fact that I'm too busy yelling at you right now!!"  
  
p"Jeez, Jess; must you always be so bloody stubborn and defensive? I know life was tough but give yourself a break here. I did what was best for you and the others. You think it was easy for me to lead the others after Solo died? If I made one screw up, we could have starved for a week or two or end up in jail! I wasn't allowed a screw up!! That why I got you out of there; I just didn't know and didn't want to run the risk!"  
  
p"So you just got rid of me like that, huh? I could have helped out; I could have gotten food and gotten you guys out of jail! But you had to send me here, huh?"  
  
p"Because I've always done what's best for you even if I didn't like it or it was so clear that it could have slapped you in your damn face Jess!" he paused anger snapping in his eyes. "Damn it Jess, you think you could cut me a little slack here…"  
  
p"No." she retorted, gathering her thoughts. "So how did you get Noel and Aiko to agree to take me in Duo?"  
  
p"What does it matter? They took you in; you had an education, food, clothes…you were living a good life with them and I knew they wouldn't mistreat you in any way."  
  
p"It does matter Duo! Why; did you beg them or something? Did you get down on your knees and don't want to tell me that fact so you can save your pride?"  
  
p"Damn it Jess I did beg! I wasn't beyond begging at that point! I begged them to take you in and give you the life that I never could!"  
  
p"So why Duo?" she demanded, sensing something else behind his words. "Why the hell would you do that for me? I was just another person to you; I could have been anybody who was-"  
  
p"Goddamn it Jess, you're my sister!! I couldn't let you go through all of that and not suffer along with you in one way or another!!"  
  
pAn abrupt silence descended over the room as Jess looked at Duo in shock. From outside the door, faint voices could be heard before hasty steps down the stairs told them an unexpected audience had fled.  
  
p"What?" she whispered not quite believing the impromptu words she had heard. She had never known Duo to lie to her. "Did you say sister?"  
  
p"Yeah…I said sister." Duo replied quietly, eyes suddenly downcast as he scuffed his socked foot on the floor.  
  
pJess walked up to him in three strides before her palm connected with his face with a loud smack. His cheek went red as he turned his head back to look at her, pain evident on his face. Her lip trembled with rage and hurt as she looked him dead in the eye.  
  
p"And…you never told me this for over ten years? Duo Maxwell…I…" she broke off, unable to continue for lack of the right words.  
  
pDuo looked down again, simply shaking his head. "Look…I'm not going to ask for your forgiveness, I don't deserve it after that… you said that you didn't want to know, so I did what you wanted…but I was only looking out for my sister…I was doing what any brother would do Jess…I'm human too ya know…."  
  
pJess looked at him, feeling the anger inside wash away in the face of new ones; she believed him. She couldn't deny the waves of remorse, guilt, sadness and misery that came off of him; they were like a cloth she could run her fingers against. Suddenly Duo moved slightly before an old worn photo came out of his pocket and into his hand, held out to her. Wordlessly, she took it, seeing the truth on it; there on the back in some unfamiliar scrawl was 'Duo and Jessica; born A.C. 180'. With a trembling hand, she turned it over to be greeted by the faces of two children in someone's arms, who almost looked exactly alike.  
  
p"Are we…" she breathed.  
  
p"No…not identical…some other word, I can't remember what it is." he paused. "I've had that picture as far back as I can tell…probably took it in for show and tell at school or something like that…"  
  
pJess looked back up to see Duo still looking at his moving feet.  
  
p"Sorry to have taken up your time. I…I'll let you get breakfast now…or brush you teeth…or have some time to yourself…whatever…" he mumbled walking past her.  
  
pJess watched as he went closer and closer to the door. There was no Shinigami there, no Duo Maxwell, the ever cheery person; only Duo Maxwell, the little boy who had tried so hard in life only to be beaten down at almost every turn yet still remained optimistic. Abandoning the photo, she ran in front of Duo, blocking the door.  
  
p"What now Jess?" he asked, not meeting her face.  
  
pShe raised his face up, finally seeing the tears in his eyes. Without a sound, she hugged him tightly. "I'm so sorry Duo."  
  
p"What for babe?" he asked a light joke in his voice.  
  
p"Yelling at you. You didn't deserve that and-"  
  
p"I recall yelling at you too ya know." he replied hugging her back. "Just seems that you did the loudest of the yelling."  
  
p"Yeah sure, blame me." she said with a shaky sort of laugh. She drew back, looking into his eyes. "Am I really that stubborn?"  
  
p"You have no idea Jess. You can be so bullheaded that a steel wall would crack if you butted it gently." he wiped away his tears. "Wanna get breakfast now?"  
  
p"Sure. What do you want to eat?" she asked as they walked to the door.  
  
p"I dunno. Hey, do you hear someone?" he asked.  
  
pNodding her head, she opened the door, walking out into the hallway. There stood Quatre, lecturing Adrian.  
  
p"You should know better than to eavesdrop on someone's conversation; how would you like it if someone did that to you?" Quatre said in a gentle voice.  
  
p"What?! The little snot was eavesdropping?! Kid, explain yourself!" Jess exclaimed with a mock look of anger.  
  
pQuatre and Adrian looked up startled by her appearance. Adrian took one look at the expression on her face and bolted down the hallway, half falling down the stairs.  
  
p"He's awful." Quatre sighed shaking his head. "I caught him listening outside the door. So, what were you guys up to?"  
  
p"Weren't you awake earlier on?" Duo asked puzzled; if their yelling didn't wake up Quatre of all people…  
  
but I went out for a bit and I just got back in; why…what did I miss?"  
  
p"I'll tell you later Quatre. Let's go get some breakfast now. I'm starving!" Jess said, going down the stairs.  
  
pThe three pilots bounded into the kitchen going through the cupboards and cabinets. Finally they had all the stuff ready to go until Quatre said something.  
  
p"Uh…Duo…we're out of…" he paused for a moment. "cinnamon. Think you can run to the store and get some?"  
  
p"What do ya need cinnamon for?"  
  
p"The French toast. You can have it plain if you like though…"  
  
pJess looked at Quatre. "Are you sure there's no cinnamon? I kinda did want some…but I'm not too eager to go out there yet. Would you mind Duo?"  
  
p"Fine…I'll go and get it." he sighed with resignation. "You two behave yourselves all right?"  
  
pJess chuckled as Duo walked out of the kitchen, the slam of the front door heard a few minutes later. She looked over at Quatre. "I get the feeling that you wanted to talk to me alone?"  
  
p"Yeah…I did. What was Duo talking to you about anyways?"  
  
p"Well…it started off as an argument…but then we ended up apologizing and making up." she paused, fidgeting nervously. "Wanna guess who my brother is?"  
  
p"Brother?" Quatre blinked in surprise. "But I thought…and then…how can he be your brother?"  
  
pShe giggled at his utter confusion. "Yeah…it caught me off guard as well. But basically he said things, I said things and well, here we are." she gave a small shrug.  
  
p"Your brother. Are you sure of this?" he asked, still not quite believing.  
  
p"Yeah, there's a picture but it's upstairs now. Besides, Duo hasn't ever lied to me; why would he do that now?"  
  
p"True." he paused for a moment, a slightly troubled look on his face. "Well, shall we get started? Duo's probably going to be back any moment now."  
  
p"What were you going to say Quatre?" she asked, coming to stand beside him.  
  
p"No. . .nothing don't worry about it. What did you talk to Duo about besides that?" he asked, cracking the eggs.  
  
pJess watched him for a moment. "He told me about my past. Nothing too big though." she paused, watching as the eggs fell in to the bowl. "We basically grew up together until he brought me here to live with Noel and Aiko. You know. . .that sorta explains why he was always teasing me when we were younger."  
  
p"Because he's your brother?" Quatre asked, glancing at her with a small laugh.  
  
don't siblings normally torment each other? You have twenty nine sisters don't you? They musta done something to tick you off."  
  
p"A few things." he paused as she took the bowl and began to batter the bread. "Like the younger ones would dress me up and want to play tea party. . ."  
  
pShe paused, the bread floating in the eggs, a smile spreading on her face. "Tea party? Was the tea any good?"  
  
p"Surprisingly good for imaginary tea." he watched as she deftly removed the soppy bread and placed it into the frying pan. "A bit sugary though. . ."  
  
p"Just a bit huh?" she looked at him a laugh about to escape. "And I bet you brushed your teeth everyday to be sure right?"  
  
p"Exactly." he moved behind her. "Is the bread OK?"  
  
p"Yeah, I just put it on Quatre. You don't think I can possibly mess this up can you?"  
  
p"I don't know. . .you called me asking how to make pancakes and all. . ."he chuckled as she whapped him lightly with her hand. "But I don't think you can mess it up."  
  
p"Thank you."  
  
p"That much." he laughed as she frowned back at him, a smile on her face. "Don't worry if the whole pan goes up in smoke, I'll know what to do."  
  
p"Oh thanks. . ."she muttered, grabbing the spatula. "You really have some faith in me huh."  
  
p"Yup." he rested his chin on her shoulder gently. "You can do this; it's pretty easy. Practically no fail."  
  
p"Hm." she glanced back at him before focusing on the pan; her stomach was fluttering so much from that simple little action of his. "Quatre?"  
  
p"Yes Jess?" he looked up at her.  
  
pShe paused, feeling as if she could fall into those eyes of his and never come out; she wasn't sure if she even wanted to come out, it would be nice to- "Do you. . .do you dream?"  
  
p"Yeah I do." he said after a brief pause. "Why? Do you too?"  
  
p"I do. I. . .dreamt. . .I dreamt that there was this guy with me once and he sorta said the same thing you said that day when Treize was shot."  
  
p"I'll never leave you Jessica. Trust in me; I never will." Quatre paused. "Is that what he said?"  
  
p"Yes." she turned around looking at him. "How could you know that; it doesn't make sense. Should it make sense Quatre?"  
  
p"I honestly don't know Jess." his hands took hers softly. "I'm starting to wonder too."  
  
pShe touched his cheek softly with a smile, his eyes holding hers. She left her hand there not quite willing to move it; she didn't know why but this seemed so...something she couldn't describe, like their contact should never end or be broken. His hand went over hers softly, fingers resting against hers. She started to lean in closer to him, unsure of what exactly she was doing, but it felt so. . .right. Quatre's arm snaked down to her waist, pulling her in slowly, heads and lips separated by mere millimeters. Her heart pounded away in her chest, as she slid a hand over his shoulder, cupping the back of his neck, drawing him in until his lips were just brushing hers. His fingertips touched her cheek slowly, light and caressing before his eyes flickered up to meet hers, the aqua green weaving their spell over her.  
  
p"All right Quatre, I got the cinnamon. Hope you didn't want a specific one."  
  
pThey broke apart hastily at the sound of Duo's voice, looking around to find something to make themselves look busy. Quatre turned to the pan and Jess found herself cracking more eggs as Duo walked into the kitchen.  
  
p"Ok I'm back. Got the cinnamon, plus some other stuff too. How do you guys feel about coffee?"  
  
p"Duo, you know you shouldn't drink that stuff." Jess groaned. "Don't you remember what happened last time? You got all hyper and decided to make friends with Wufei on the day he was trying to meditate? Then he wanted to introduce you to his katana."  
  
p"I didn't think he'd try to chop my hair off." he shrugged. "Besides, it's decaf. Less caffeine is the point right? And tea does have caffeine in it too ya know. I'll make a pot ok?"  
  
p"Fine." she sighed, turning back to the eggs and bread. "But if I bite your head off later when you start bouncing off the walls, I won't say I told ya so."  
  
p"That's what you say." he chuckled. "You know where the filters are?"  
  
p"Downstairs in the pantry; coffee isn't drunk much in this house."  
  
pDuo shook his head. "Downstairs I go eh? Maybe I'll skip coffee. I don't really want to walk anymore."  
  
pJess shook her head as she continued to beat the eggs. Once in a while, she would glance back at Quatre, his eyes meeting hers. i'What's wrong with me?'/i She smiled back despite the flush spreading over her face, not wanting to worry him. i"What did we just do? Could he really have the same dream as me? Is that even possible? He. . .no. . . .he couldn't. . .it was probably. . .'/i Frustrated, she grabbed the carton of eggs and placed it back in the fridge. i'I honestly don't know anymore; I'm going to be hunted for 'assassinating' Treize, I find out that Duo is my brother and my love life, if you can call it that, I don't know what the hell to make of it.'p[1] Quel dommage ~ French for 'What a shame.'  
  
br[2] futaoya ~ Japanese for parents…if this is wrong, please tell me so I can fix the error.  
  
br[3] reijou ~ Japanese for 'daughter' as in daughter daughter, not adopted…I know I made it purposefully mushy at that part. Again, if this is wrong, tell me!! I hate having spelling errors when it comes to other languages and I do my best; I'm only human after all…  
  
br[4] Oyasumi nasai ~ Japanese for 'Good night'…again, if I'm wrong please feel free to totally stick it to me… 


	17. Seventeen

**Torment of Paradise **

~*~

Chapter 17 

~*~

Lara sat in the worn chair of her desk, closing her eyes. _'This has been a week from hell.'_ Slouching forward, she rested her head against her arms on the desk, wanting nothing more than to lose herself in sleep. A few minutes later, the door opened, Zechs walking in. Wearily, Lara stood waiting to hear what he had to say. He didn't say anything simply closing the door, a thoughtful look on his face. 

"Lara. . .what haven't you been telling me?" his quiet voice echoed around the room slightly. 

"That's a very blunt way to put it Zechs. I've told you everything you asked of me." she couldn't meet his gaze, eyes focusing on the pen lying on the desk. 

"You know what I'm talking about. I'm your superior officer and you shouldn't hide things of importance from me. What's going on?" 

"You know as well as I do Zechs; no one knows where Treize is now and a search is ongoing for Jess. What more do you want?" she repressed the urge to swallow her nervousness. "What do you want me to say?" 

"The truth would be a nice start Lara. I'm not a fool; what's going on between you and Samuel? I've noticed all the checks you and him have been pulling on each other for the past while; why the games?" 

"Because. . .because he and Une have plans." 

Zechs arched an eyebrow. "And these plans would consist of?" 

"I can't tell you." she murmured. 

"And why not; I believed that you trusted me enough to tell me anything Lara." 

She paused; did she detect a hint of hurt in his voice? Shaking her head she dismissed it. "I do trust you Zechs; I'd trust you with my life if I had to. It's because I cannot implicate you anymore than I already have. I know too much and they can take me down at any given moment; I have to be very careful Zechs." 

"Know too much about what?" he strode into the room a bit more, seating himself in the seat. "What shouldn't I know Lara?" 

She sighed. "Must you be so persistent? It may be your downfall one day you know that right Zechs?" 

"Then I shall wait until that day comes." he replied calmly. 

She couldn't help but give a small wry laugh. "So very like you. If I tell you, you may face a court marshal; you may make it out alive. . .you may not." 

"I've had worse odds." he gave a dry smile. "So what is it?" 

"You know during Treize's speech. . .it wasn't really Jess who tried to kill him. She was a fall guy, a scapegoat." she paused, unsure of how to continue. 

"You mean it was orchestrated by someone else?" he paused, thinking. "Someone in the ranks of Oz or Romefeller perhaps?" 

"Close enough. Une and Samuel plotted the whole thing. I overheard them the night before you came back from your trip. I suspect that they planned the entire thing." she ran a hand through her hair. "They want Treize gone so they can take over and do God knows what." 

"A conspiracy; I assume you have verified this?" 

Lara nodded her head, taking a tape out. "Come with me, I want to show you something. It proves me beyond a shadow of doubt. Luckily I was able to get my hands on this tape and Samuel doesn't know." 

She walked down the hall rapidly Zechs keeping an easy stride beside her. They walked into a small video viewing room, seating themselves in the two chairs. Sliding in the tape Lara searched out for the particular spot. 

"You remember that Samuel was on the security detail right?" 

"Yes; he showed strange behaviour at the speech Treize gave." 

"They said he's dead." 

Zechs shook his head. "I know Treize. He's not dead yet." 

With a smile that disappeared Lara turned back to the TV. "It's right here; before he gets shot." she fell silent as the sound of the gun rang out and the ensuing panic descended. "There; do you see it?" she stabbed the pause button freezing the image. 

"Is. . .Samuel holding Miss Jessica down; that's what it looks like to me." 

Lara nodded. "I wasn't sure at first yet I can't deny it. Why would he do that if he was security? Then he did something else that disturbs me even more." she let the tape run showing the shrinking figures of Jess and Samuel disappear into an alleyway only to be followed by a dark haired figure a few seconds later. "And she never came out. . .well of that end. But I can't find her anywhere. Though I think that she may be back at her house." 

"Then perhaps she doesn't want to be found by anyone else other than a few." 

"I wouldn't blame her but she shouldn't have up and left like that; she's now the prime suspect in this murder case." she shook her head. "There's almost no way for her to clear her name at all. Plus with Colonel Une in charge with Treize gone and Samuel as her lackey I am not comforted by that fact at all." 

"What do you think they have planned; a complete change for Oz?" 

"Yes, I have come to believe that. I have been keeping track of them as quietly as possible and they have been making some strange purchases. First there was that contract with the Winner Foundation for use of their resources on their satellites and resource centers and then they start relocating all the men. Here, take a look at this map I did." 

"They're all moved around to shuttle ports and key shipping bases." Zechs paused flipping between the maps. "Very effective chokehold they have established." 

Lara nodded her head. "I would say so. Now I have to undo it somehow. And that's going to be twice as-" 

"You have to undo this? Lara, you don't have to take it upon yourself. If anyone should be doing this, it's me." 

"No, not you Zechs." she whispered, looking away into the blank screen now. "I am responsible for this in a manner of speaking and therefore I shall take responsibility for it." 

"How so?" he replied gently, raising her face up to look him in the eye. "I fail to see how you are responsible." 

"In my own way I am. I pushed for her to be placed under Treize's supervision and she could protect him in return. But I simply gave Samuel the scapegoat he had been looking for this entire time and-" 

Zechs shook his head. "You can't predict what his behaviour was going to be exactly. You did what you felt to be right at the time and acted accordingly." he gave her a slightly wistful look. 

"And it turned out to be the wrong thing Zechs and I just can't let his -" she stopped suddenly as he leaned forward and pulled her closer to him, her face starting to flush from the surprising and pleasing contact. "Zechs. . .what are you doing?" 

"You try far too hard sometimes Lara and set yourself up for a fall." he murmured softly into her ear. "Try to relax once in awhile and go with the flow. You really do too much." 

"Zechs I have to do much because-" 

She was promptly silenced by a finger pressing to her lip. Her gaze flickered down to the gentle touch on her skin before she met his eyes again. She reached up and rested her hand against his, not willing to move it away yet; she rather liked the sensation of him touching her even if it would be for this one brief moment. His fingers trailed away only to travel down her neck and rest in the hollow of her throat causing her heartbeat to pick up. She gave a slight swallow as her hand slid up his arm slowly. 

"Maybe you do too much sometimes Lara." he whispered softly. 

She shook her head sadly. "There's a reason for everything I do Zechs. Everything I do is for people I love." 

"Is that why you do so much for me?" 

"I don't do much for you. I do what you want me to do to the best of-" 

"I don't think many assistants would go to half the lengths you did. Like bringing in my favourite breakfast." 

"So you happen to eat croissants; big deal." 

"With a coffee exactly the way I like it; plus you bring a whole bag of croissants that are extremely hard to find here." 

She shrugged. "I thought you'd like it." she mumbled, her entire face going red. 

"You seem to think of me a lot." he stated gently. "Or do you just think too much?" 

She couldn't stop the chuckle that escaped. "No, I just. . .I don't want anything else bad to happen to anyone in care about." 

Zechs caressed her face gently. "Then I don't know why I let you do half the things you do." 

Lara looked up at him sharply. "What. . .exactly are you saying Zechs?" 

He didn't reply as he leaned in closer to her, breath moving over her face softly in a lulling rush. She didn't move back but found herself moving forwards towards his lips, her hand sliding down to his shoulder, wishing there was skin beneath her touch and not the damning cloth. 

"I'm pretty sure you can tell me. Every single day I see you there working away and I know you feel the same thing I do Lara. I know you do. . ." 

With a small swallow she rose. "Zechs, I do have other things to attend to at the moment. I really have to go but I thought it best to have you see the tape." 

"I see." he rose also, straightening his shirt. "Then I shall leave you to work then Lara." 

She nodded her head silently as she took the tape out and went to the door. "If you need me, I'll be in my quarters Zechs." she said quietly before she walked out. 

"All right." 

Lara felt like kicking herself as the door closed and she headed down the hall to her room. _'You dummy; you let your guard down too much and now look at you.'_ She looked down at the floor miserably watching as her boots scuffed the floor. Coming to her quarters she opened the door, placing the tape on the small table by the chair at the entrance and glancing at the bedside clock. _'Cripes, I didn't even realize that it was eleven. I'm way overdue for a good night's sleep.'_ She peeled off her clothes and headed for the shower, relishing the feel of the hot water against her skin. _'Zechs. . .'_ She bit her lip; she knew full well that what he had said was true but he was still her superior officer and it wouldn't be right. Her very good looking superior. . . She turned off the water and got out, pulling on a bathrobe and walking out in the main room. 'He even got me this room; I shouldn't have it, only a plain barracks room.' She sat on the edge of the bed and picked up the brush, intending to remove the tangles from her hair but was interrupted by a quiet knock. Sighing she rose, placing the brush down and going to the door. 

"Zechs. . ." she stood there with the door half open, unsure of what to do next. When she saw the faint red stain by his side, she pulled him into the room quickly. "What happened?" 

"Had a little run in." he said as he sat down heavily on the chair. "It's nothing to worry about." 

Lara frowned as she peeled his shirt back, and gently felt along the edges of his shirt before she traveled up further, seeking the source of the bleeding. "This has the appearance of a stab wound." 

"It is." he said with a wince as she found the pot on his shoulder. "They came at me from behind." 

With a curse, Lara ran to the bathroom, searching for the medical kit. Finding it, she came back and seated herself in front of him. Wordlessly, she undid his shirt and started to work. "Why do you think you were stabbed?" 

"What we discussed." 

Her eyes flickered up to meet his before she looked back down at what she was doing. "We were alone in the room Zechs, no one could possibly know." 

"Someone does." he grimaced slightly as she poured a bit of peroxide on the wound. "And that means you could be next." 

"I can put two and two together you know." she muttered as she wiped away the last of the blood and got out the bandages. "We should be careful Zechs. What we're doing is risky and could get us into serious trouble. With Oz and others." 

He nodded as she lifted his arm and started to wrap the bandage around his shoulder. "And you should stop going to places you shouldn't be in." 

Lara froze for a minute before she continued. "You know about that?" 

"Yes. But you did a very good job of sneaking around." Zechs' eyes held something of a twinkle before it dimmed. "I don't like it when officers under my jurisdiction go behind my back to do things. Things of sedition." 

"I apologize Zechs; especially if it got you into trouble. But I am not going to sit around and wait for things to happen. It makes me anxious, worrisome and a general pain in the ass." 

He chuckled. "I would imagine." 

"I won't take that the wrong way," she said in a slightly miffed tone. "I should tell you then. I plan to find files and get them into more capable hands; hands that can take immediate action." 

"I don't see how you plan to get them into the pilots' hands." 

"I have a way," she said as she tied off the last of the bandage. "And it won't get you into anymore trouble." 

Zechs didn't respond, simply looking at her. She sighed as she rose, intending to put the kit back in the bathroom. What stopped her was when Zechs took hold of her hand and wouldn't let go. She looked back at him, those blue eyes holding hers. 

"Lara…I…you should…" 

She cocked her head, slightly puzzled, before she realized what he was trying to say. Giving him a slightly crooked smile, she kneeled down and hugged him. 

"I'll be careful." she whispered into his ear. 

Lara closed her eyes as Zechs squeezed her midsection gently, sighing heavily into her neck. She kissed his temple gently before she drew away and headed into the bathroom _'I promise you that.'_

~*~

Hurriedly Lara headed down the hall to the file room at the back of the base. _'I know that file has to be in here somewhere. It's like a needle in a haystack looking for these things sometimes I swear.'_ So far she and Zechs had played it cool to their fellow soldiers as well as the feeding frenzy media. But the hard task was making sure that Une and Samuel didn't get wind of their plans. _'Now I get to go over the security again. Damn Une…she's trying to get me out of her way. One blasted file on Treize and I know it will take me forever to find. I'm going to be here a while.'_ With a derisive snort she entered the room, the quiet glow of a computer greeting her. Seating herself at the console, she started her search with a sense of inevitability; but a creeping feeling started to take over her. _'I have a better idea…'_ She abandoned her search, heading for Colonel Une's documents; only her and Samuel were allowed to view them whenever they wished. 

"Let's hope I haven't forgotten all my hacking skills…hopefully." she muttered as she sat down at the console and started searching on the database for the section. 

It didn't take her long to find and hack in. One file after another paraded across the screen causing her to slouch forward and rest a hand on her palm; it was going to be awhile before she left. _'Blah blah blah. Supply forms, ammunitions requests, officer profiles...'_ She paused for a moment to skim through some before turning back to her task. _'God this is going to. . .hello what have we here. . .'_ She peered at the screen carefully. _'Classified information huh? Since I'm on a roll for insubordination and all. . .'_ Quickly she hacked into the file and started scanning over the information. 

"Jesus. . .and I thought they were messed up before." she muttered. Rooting around for a disk, she slid it into the drive and saved it. "This should come in very handy. Incriminating evidence is a wonderful thing; even more so when the idiots put it down in some form." 

The soft creak of the door opening, made her whip around to see a shadow lengthening along the floor. She rose quickly, shutting off the monitor and ducking behind a large filing cabinet. _'Shit the disk.'_ A cautious peer around the corner told her it was too late to try and retrieve it. _'Of all the damn people to come in here now. . .'_ Lara squeezed her eyes shut as the familiar profile of Samuel seated itself at the computer terminal. She held her breath, waiting for him to go; he shouldn't be taking too long anyways, he was usually a pretty fast guy. The sound of the power button being hit made her sigh inwardly with relief; now she was logged out. But the relief was soon replaced by something else. 

"What the hell? Whose disk is in the drive; no wonder the computer won't reboot." 

Lara bit down on her lip as the click of the button reached her; at least she hadn't put anything identifying on it. Moving down the aisle, she pushed aside some dusty old files before she peered out of the small peephole she had made. _'Maybe I can give him a small push away in the right direction.'_ She ran to back corner of the room and made a small noise. The click of the keyboard paused for a second before it started back up again. She made the noise again causing the chair to creak with the familiar sound of someone rising from it. 

"Whoever else is in here, identify yourself immediately." 

Lara couldn't help but repress her giggle; who was he kidding? No one would come right out like that. She pushed over a stack of files before ducking behind another cabinet. 

"Christ, some sloppy idiot left this mess sitting here?" 

With a relieved sigh, she went back to the front and went for the disk on the counter, which was. . . _'Damn it, one thing after another.'_ There were two disks with identical yellow labels on them. She looked between them frantically before grabbing the one on the left and stuff ing it in her pocket. Exiting the room quickly, she walked down the hallway to her own office. _'Please be my disk. . .please. . .'_ She chewed her lip as she slid it into her computer drive and waited for it to open. When the screen finally popped up, her entire face blanched. Before her wasn't the same plans as earlier on; she found herself looking at the food orders for the cafeteria. 

"Oh fuck, this is not a good thing; not very good at all." she muttered, head in her hands as her mind raced to work out the new twist. 

~*~

"So why exactly are you going to sneak in to Samuel's office?" Zechs asked as they cradled their drinks in the officers' lounge. "Is there a specific reason?" 

"He has my disk. And it has confidential information on it." Lara took a drink of her pint. "I can't believe I left it in the drive. The bloody drive of all places." 

"If I remember correctly, Samuel said that he was going out to base about five towns over. Apparently they have apprehended the suspect in Treize's shooting." he gave her an amused look before he fell serious. "But things might have changed." 

"Well now. . .I know where I have to be then." she paused, looking into the dregs of her glass . "And you are to stay put. No matter what happens, you are to act as if this was completely new to you." 

"Sometimes I wonder if I am the superior officer." he mused. "What was on it?" 

"Some outlines for the Winner resources and satellites; it involved a lot of gundanium from what I could tell and would require a very large budget." she paused. "The people of the colonies will not like Oz going in and taking what is theirs like the organization owns it." 

"Then prepare for a firestorm." Zechs murmured. "And it would appear that Colonel Une is coming right this way." 

"I need to speak with you Lieutenant." she said briefly. 

Zechs flashed Lara a silent goodbye before he rose and walked out after Une. Lara watched the door with a slightly sinking feeling before she finished off her drink and rose herself. 

"Now to see just how much the keg will go." she muttered to herself as she headed down the hallway. 

The door to Samuel's office approached fast, no guards in sight. Walking up to it, she glanced down the hallway quickly before easing herself in. The darkened room revealed itself to her adjusting sight as she moved slowly to the desk, looking around as she went; the last thing that she wanted was to get caught in a superior's office. She started through the main drawers of the desk, leaving everything as she found it. A muffled curse flew past her lips as she came to the locked drawer; she jiggled it hoping it would give. 

"Fucking things decide to not go my way today of all the fucking days." she hissed savagely as she grabbed a paperclip and started to pick the lock. A few moments later the sound of a lock clicking echoed around then room faintly making her smile in relieved triumph. "Eat that you bastard." 

She chuckled with satisfaction to herself as she started riffling through the drawer. _'Aha!! Here it is. Now for me to get out of here.'_ Closing the door and locking it back again, she started to the front door. 

"If you will wait a minute Lady Une, I can get you the disk from my desk." 

Lara froze at the sound of Samuel's voice. _'I thought he went somewhere else? Bastard must have come back. Where the hell am I going to hide now?!'_ She looked around the room before spying a small closet in the corner. Ripping open the door, she wedged herself into the small space as much as she could before managing to close the door. She braced her feet against the wall as the light flicked on, streaming in underneath the crack of the door. 

"Are all the preparations ready Samuel?" 

"Of course Une. By this time next week, Treize will be out of our hair for good and we can proceed with our plan to monopolize Oz and for the colonies." there came a laden pause. "Are you implying that I can't fulfil my responsibilities?" 

"You couldn't even keep control of you wife. How can I be sure that you will do this?" Une's voice held a tinge of scorn. 

"My wife," the word came out strained. "Is the least of our concerns at the moment. That whore will get what's coming to her." 

"I'm sure." the voice sounded slightly doubtful. 'Where's this disk that you wanted me to see? " 

Lara peered out of the closet to see them bent over the desk, their backs towards her. She opened the door a bit more, looking at the door. _'I can make that.'_ She eased her body out of the closet and started towards the door slowly, opening it easily and closing it behind her. _'Phew.'_ With a sigh of relief, she took a step right onto the creaky patch just in front of Samuel's door. 

"Is someone out there?" Une's voice was tense and strained. 

"I'll go and see." the sound if Samuel rising and coming towards the door made her step back and away. 

Taking a steadying breath Lara started walking down the hall. She didn't stop until Samuel's curt order made her turn. "Yes Sir?" 

"Did you see anyone walking down this hall?" he looked at her with slight scorn as if she couldn't know. 

"No Sir. I was going to get some work done. Was there something you wanted me to do?" she asked in a patronizing tone. 

He didn't reply as he shot her a look and stalked back to his office. Lara turned immediately and went down the hall to her quarters and locking the door behind her. She slid the disk in as she sat down and started going through the information through it. _'At least I have the disk back. But I think that now is the time to take an impromptu trip away.'_ She went over to the vidphone and dialled. 

"What?!" 

Lara blinked, surprised by the abrupt pickup and even more so by the more than cross tone. "Hi Jess. Uh, may I ask why you're so mad?" 

Jess blinked at her for a few seconds with an expression of disbelief on her face. "What do you want? I'm kinda busy." 

"Look, I have to give you something pretty important. It does concern your friend too." 

"What is it?" 

"Are you talking to Lara now?" there came a disgusted sigh. "I think we were busy yelling at you for your inane stupidity! You've lost it completely haven't you?!" 

"Duo, you were busy yelling at her. And would you just let her finish up the conversation? I'm sure that it's not going to be long. Right Jess?" Quatre's tired sigh reached her ears. 

_'She must be having handful at the moment.'_ Lara craned her neck as a braid swished into view briefly. "Am I interrupting something important?" 

Jess' mouth twitched. "What did you have to give me? A disk? And may I ask why a certain person isn't fawning around you?" 

"That's none of your business and yes. I think you'll find the information on it very useful. Are you willing to picking it up? I don't exactly want to give away your position." 

"I can pick it up. Where do you-" the rest of her words were drowned out by Duo's loud protests, and Quatre's voice trying to get him to calm down. An irritated look crossed her face before she turned around. "Duo! Shut the hell up so I can hear what Lara is saying!! You yelling you head off every five seconds isn't helping me to end this conversation any time soon!!" 

Lara repressed her snicker as dead silence descended around the room. "So...you'll be able to meet me then?" 

"Hai [1]. Where did you want to meet?" 

"Some place that won't be too obvious to others. Do you remember when we skipped class that day in the last few weeks of school? And can you bring your laptop?" Lara paused as she looked back at the door; it was locked. Yet the feeling that someone was in there didn't leave her. 

"All right. I can meet you there; I'll bring it with me. Three days good?" 

"Perfect. I'll see you in a few days then." 

"All right." Jess paused as she moved slightly, trying to see behind Lara. "Is someone else in the room with you?" 

"No. Why do you-" Lara started to turn around but was greeted by a cloth covered hand descending over her nose and mouth. A strange ether-like smell invaded her senses before she slid down into darkness. 

~*~

"Wakey wakey." the soft words were followed by a gentle pat on the face. 

Lara opened her eyes to see bright lights swimming in front of her. Trying to stretch, she found that her hands were restrained with manacles. "What the hell do you want," she waited until her vision cleared and she recognized the face. "Philip?" 

"To ask you some questions. And then you can face your little court marshal." he sat down in front of her. "What in the Devil's name possessed you to even try and take on Samuel and Une? Do you realize that they had me monitor your activities since Treize was killed? Not that you made it easy, so I do commend your skills." 

"I figured they do as much...but eventually." she paused as she looked at him. "Do you even realize what they've done to the colonies? What they plan to do?" Lara asked as she tugged on her restraints. 

"It's not my job to question orders. I receive them and follow. That's all I have ever needed out of life. The rest falls into place." 

Lara shook her head. "They plan to starve the colonies should something happen; it's their fallback to maintain their position if something threatens them." 

"Is that what you saw in that disk?" Philip removed a slim black disk with a yellow label. "Anything else more curious?" 

"They are shipping large amounts of gundanium to different colonies and Earth. Like their assembling parts of something." 

"Did they happen to take over the project of our illustrious leader since he met his untimely demise?" Philip arched an eyebrow at her. "For a mobile suit perhaps?" 

"Look, I still have no clear idea but that would explain why they need that amount of gundanium plus the Winner Foundation resources. If that ever happens, I hope to God that I'm not in the colonies when the news erupts. Can't you see what they are doing?" 

Philip rose and paced around for a few minutes before facing her with a shrewd gaze. "For someone who's facing a court marshal, you are being extremely loose with the information you possess. Why, do you wish to convince me to let you go?" 

"I never said that." 

"You didn't have to. It was up here." he tapped the side of his head. "So why were you hoping to convince me to let you go?" 

Lara paused for a second. "Maybe because I know a bit about you despite all those blocks you put on your files." she watched as his face remained blank. "I found information on you too during my hunting, Philip Séamus Wolfe. I know you come from the colonies; I know you love them and don't want anything to happen there. I can tell you for certain that if you don't let me get to certain people, the worst will happen and there won't be a single damn thing you can do to protect the place you love the most." 

She lapsed into silence as Philip gave her a cool gaze, not saying anything. The minutes ticked by torturously slow emphasized by the minute hand on the wall clock. Finally Philip sat back down in front of her. 

"You are going to tell everything you know and then I will decide what to do with you." he stated quietly. 

"I think I have told you enough." 

"No you haven't. Now you tell me everything or I leave you to fry before Samuel and Une. They will be heading your court marshal most undoubtedly. So that leaves you with two choices and five seconds to decide." 

Lara gave an involuntary hard swallow seeing the cold hard expression on Philip's face. "Fine. You want to know everything? Where do you want me to start?" 

"How did you get involved in this?" 

"I never trusted Samuel from the start." 

Philip gave a small snort. "He'd sell you out in a second. Now why did you decide upon such a suicidal course of action?" 

"I figured I'd go out with a bang. That and I didn't want my superior officer implicated in this as well so I proceeded without clearance." 

"Yes. Just as you gave him clearance to your quarters a few nights previous." he paused seeing her face flush violently. "Don't worry; that I didn't report." 

Lara cleared her throat as she maintained her composure. "I proceeded to search for information and then I stumbled upon this information when Une sent me to find a file on Treize and gave me the necessary clearance for the database; it was the perfect opportunity. When I saw the information, I realized that there was no way that I could deal with this. Handle Samuel and Une, yes. But prevent full fledged rioting and further rebellion in the colonies; that was beyond me." 

"So you called Jess to see if she could do anything." Philip murmured as he leaned back into his seat, stroking his chin slowly. 

"She would be better equipped to deal with it, despite the charges of murder hanging over her head at the moment." Lara paused for a second. "Are you happy now? You have all you information and my head is killing me now from that damn chloroform." 

"Very. And I didn't intend for you to develop a headache." Philip tilted the chair back. "Do you know where Samuel is at this moment?" 

"Off somewhere being the prick that he is." Lara muttered in a disgruntled voice. 

"No. He's off to the colonies, to oversee this little project that he and Une are overseeing." Philip let the chair fall back forward. "If what you say is true, then there's only one shot to prevent the colonies from erupting." 

"It is. Have you seen the disk?" 

"No. And I won't have time if I am to escort you to a high security detainment center." 

"So you still don't believe me?" 

"I do. However, it is a shame that a certain prisoner will escape near her rendezvous point and I will have an accident that will prevent me from reporting in for about a week. The walk back to civilization will be long and arduous." 

Lara watched as he rose and motioned for her to do so. "You mean that you're..." 

"The colonies need every chance they have; they have been through enough of Oz's crap and I do want this all to end. I just want to go home and try to have a normal life. I am far too young for this." 

Lara remained speechless as she was escorted out and soon enough she found herself jouncing along in the Jeep seat beside Philip. She watched as the trees passed by into open stretches of grass and fields highlighted by the moonlight. 

"Why did you give me such a hard time back there Philip?" she asked suddenly as turned to face him. 

"Just for the hell of it." he grinned. "I have to get my laughs somehow." 

"You're messed up, you know that?" she said with a quiet laugh. "Really messed up." 

"Why thank you. I think you're going to be a bit early for your meeting with Jess. Your old school is coming up down the road here. And don't worry; I'll let Zechs know what happened." 

Lara craned her neck as the tall building loomed up in the night. _'Why did the drive seem so fast?'_ The headlights disappeared as Philip pulled into the parking lot. Killing the engine, he took out a set of keys and undid her cuffs. He didn't say anything as he looked at her and started up the engine again before handing her the disk. She nodded her head in thanks as she took it and opened the door and got out of the Jeep. 

"I owe you one Philip." she murmured as she watched the vehicle jounce on down the road. "Now to make myself comfortable until Jess shows up." 

~*~

Sunlight streamed in as Lara looked out of the dusty old window. With a sigh, she rose from her uncomfortable seat and started walking around to stretch her muscles, looking down from her perch on the upper walkway. _'The sooner that Jess gets here, the sooner this can be done and over with.'_ As if on cue, the sound of the rusty old door creaking open made her fall back, until she could see a small sliver of the doorway. A blonde head appeared for a split second; she walked forward hesitant, to get a better look. 

"Lara, you'd better be here. If not, I'll kick your butt when I see you next time." 

"Punctual as always." she said, as she leaned against the railing. Lara stepped back with a gasp. "What the hell did you do to your hair?! It's blonde....and long! Didn't you get a hair cut ? I can barely see your eyes!!" 

Jess glared up at her as she tucked a bang behind her ear. "If you expect me to walk out there like no one wants my head, then I wonder about your mind and not to mention your reasoning." 

"Sorry...the shock of it, that's what you're hearing." Lara said shaking her head as she walked down. "It's just that...I never thought you'd go blonde of all the colours to pick. It's so out there for a person like you, just asking for-" 

"Attention? That's why I picked it. They will be expecting me to keep a low profile; this is the last thing they would expect me to do." 

"Well, I must admit that I certainly wasn't expecting this. So did you bring your laptop with you?" 

"It's right here." she patted the slim black bag beside her side. "I'm glad that Quatre kept it for me. By the way, your brother is an annoying little snot and my parents like him. Now what did you need my computer for?" 

_'When all of this has been said and done, I can try to be a real sister.'_ A smile spread over her face. "I want you to look at this disk. It's yours; I think you'll know what to do with it more than I would." Lara took the slim plastic square from her pocket and handed it to Jess. 

"Arigatou [2]." Jess plunked herself down on a crate by a nearby outlet. "At least power still runs in this place." 

Lara seated herself beside Jess as she hooked up her computer and slid the disk into the drive. "Can I ask you something?" 

Jess barely looked up as she started through the disk. "Fine. Shoot." 

"What was that argument about when I so tactfully called and interrupted?" 

The sound of keys clicking stopped as Jess looked up at her. "Why do you want to know? Hell I almost found myself coming after you until I saw that Philip was the one who brought you in." 

"You almost came after me? Does that mean you finally forgave me?" 

Jess simply gave a snort as she turned back to the computer and the clicking sound returned. "Let's just say that time should heal all wounds. Besides, he's a good guy." 

"With a twisted sense of humour." Lara muttered in a dry voice, earning a speculative glance from Jess. "Never mind. Continue." 

"All right. So...what you did was horrible. And I have a new found respect for chickens and certain things in life. But I do forgive you. I mean...how many years has it been since that happened? Oh well, a long time and it was long enough if you ask me." Jess gave her a smile before she went back to the screen. 

With a sigh Lara patted her on the back. "I knew you'd forgive me soon enough. I accept your forgiveness." 

"Heh." Jess slid her an oblique glance before turning back to information before her. "How very big of you. Now leave me to go over this crap alright? Seeing what is here is a good idea, ne [3]?" 

"All right. But I do eventually want to see you get a haircut." Lara said with a chuckle as Jess shot her a scowl. 

Silence descended around as Jess scanned through the information, keys clicking randomly now as she frowned once in awhile. Lara peered over her shoulder a few times to receive another scowl; she backed off with a sheepish smile. Finally frustrated, she rose and started to pace around in a circle. The bars had moved halfway across the floor before Jess finally gave a sigh and stretched her arms. 

"Cripes Lara. Where the hell did you get this stuff?" Jess looked at her after she rubbed her eyes. 

"Oz database. Ironically, Une gave me the clearance in order to find a file on Treize. She just didn't know that I could hack." 

"Well, this is a serious matter. But there is no way that I can deal with this." 

Lara remained silent for a few seconds. "Can't or won't?" 

"Hey, don't start giving me some lecture on the doing the right thing here. In war, there is no such thing as the right thing." Jess brought the screen down and rose, leaving it on her seat. "There are other factors that I considered as I went over that file." 

"And they were?" 

"Success factor, which is pretty damn low. About twenty percent chance of being successful. Also, supplies and funds; my funds are pretty low, I haven't had time to transfer some funds into my bank accounts. And even then I have to wait about a few weeks until I have access to the money. And then, there's my parents. If something happens to me, if I get caught up there in the colonies, things will not be pretty for them down here on Earth. Plus I stand a good chance of getting lynched by a mob up there. You are asking me to stick my neck out on the block pretty far there." 

"That's never stopped you before. So why is now any different?" 

"Where the hell have you been? Cloistered away in front of a computer for the past two weeks? Well, the climate has changed radically. If this actually goes through and the public finds out , they will be baying for blood." 

"I know. But surely you can do-" 

"Plus I still have something to settle with Treize." 

"What? He's dead...isn't he?" Lara gave Jess a completely puzzled look. 

"Oh far from it. That wily bastard is holed up somewhere. He's almost fully recovered. I wanted to go and make sure that he recovered completely. And that's what the argument was about. " 

"Treize is still alive? How can that be? The hospital reports indicate that he died of complications from the gunshot." 

"But I bet you haven't released that to the media yet have you?" Jess gave a dry laugh at Lara's nod. "Then Samuel and Une will want him eliminated as soon as possible. I intend that will never happen. Things are already complicated enough with Treize as a general. We don't need two megalomaniac psychos in power. Romefeller messed up big time with them. If anything, Treize should be back in power; he has the sensibilities need in times like these." 

"You really respsct the guy don't you?" 

"Hai. And I still have to answer him on certain things. I am not done with him. And neither is someone else too I think." 

"All right." Lara remained silent. "Can you do something about the situation in the colonies?" 

"I can try and do my best but I give you no guarantees." 

"What if I looked after Treize while you go up to the colonies?" 

"That could work I suppose. But you'd have to keep constant vigilance and all that crap." 

"Like you'd keep..." she trailed off seeing the look on Jess' face. "Constant vigilance and all that crap, I understand. Anything else? Like maybe where he is?" 

"I know where he is. I called to make sure, believe it or not. He was surprised to see it was me of all people. You really want to go through with this huh?" 

"What have we got to lose?" 

"Oh, besides a brilliant general who may solve the whole thing and the tenuous semblance of peace of the colonies, not much in addition to our lives." 

"Sounds like a kamikaze mission, doesn't it?" 

"It does. But I'm going for it." Jess disconnected her computer with a sigh and packed it up . 

Lara gave a sigh herself, one of relief. "So we're going to get on this right away." 

"Like we have any time to lose." Jess shouldered her bag before looking at Lara. "I'll give you the directions to Treize's location." 

"Thanks. I think we have a shot here to do some good in the colonies. But it's going to be pretty hard, for both of us." Lara flicked Jess' bangs. "Are you ready to go off and die?" 

Jess gave a smile as they walked to the door and stepped out. "No. And besides, with some of the people I know, kamikaze is a walk in the park." 

~*~

  
  
_**Notes **_   
[1] Hai - Japanese for 'yes'   
[2] Arigatou - Japanese for 'thank you'   
[3] ne - a particle in Japanese that means 'isn't it?' when added onto the end of a sentence 


	18. Eighteen

_**Torment of Paradise**_

A/N: I hope this chapter length is decent for those who tire of reading so much. So this chappie is pretty much dedicated to Jasmine Maxwell-Yuy, who kinda yelled at me for the length of the others and gave me a swift kick in the ass (domoo Jas, you always were the realist among us...more or less.... ^^) and as well as the others who are actually still here. If you are, I really am touched...*sniffles* Enjoy the chapter. 

~*~

Chapter 18 

~*~

The deep red-orange sky greeted Quatre's eyes as he looked up from the book. With a sigh, he got up from the hammock in the backyard and headed inside the house. Two days had passed since Jess had left and not a single word had come from her. _'I should have expected as much.'_ He slid open the patio door and closed it behind him. _'She never really talks about what she feels.'_ Pausing he noted the strange silence in the house. 

"Hello? Is anyone here?" he called as he headed to the foot of the stairs. Not a single answer. 

Puzzled he walked into the kitchen to see a note held to the fridge by a magnet. It seemed as if they had gone out with Adrian and Duo and wouldn't be back for a bit. _'Now it seems as if I am alone now.'_ Rubbing his eyes wearily, he headed up the stairs to put away the book back in Jess' room. As usual, her room was a mess, the bedcover pulled back hastily and a pile of clothes beside the laundry hamper and not in it. Shaking his head with a smile, he placed it back on the shelf and left. 

"I could use some dinner now. It must be about eight or nine." he mumbled as he headed into the kitchen. 

He paused now as the sounds of notes playing reached his ears. _'I know that sound...that's Jess' playing.'_ He walked out of the kitchen hesitantly as he looked around for the source of the music. The living room was empty and her room certainly was. Perplexed he leaned against the wall as the music kept playing. _'Huh? It's coming through the wall...'_ Pressing his ear close, the music sounded louder. He looked along, searching for a doorknob. Finding it tucked away just out of sight, he opened the door and saw a flight of stairs descending down. Slowly he walked down, peering ahead of himself. Setting his feet down on the cool carpet, he looked around. The basement was decorated simply, the walls converted to bookcases and filled. And sitting right in the middle of the room was a piano, the music rolling off gently with a force behind it. 

"Jess." he called softly not really wanting to disturb her. 

If she heard him, she made no motion, the music still playing on. Her brow furrowed together as she started to pick up the speed and intensity. Soon enough, the room was filled with the lashing notes, her mouth a grim line as she poured out the obvious rage, anger and weariness. Quatre sat down on the step as she played feverishly, simply watching her and trying to catch himself; this kind of intensity was something new for him. After what seemed like a good while, she finally stopped, slamming the cover back down over the keys, her hands resting on it. 

"Do you have any idea what your father has done Quatre? Doesn't he have any idea what Oz is like?" 

"And when did you get back?" he asked rising and seating himself beside her. 

She remained silent as she obviously struggled to maintain her composure. "I got back a few hours ago. You were reading in the hammock and I didn't want to disturb you. Just what the hell was your father thinking when he made that deal with Oz?" 

Quatre remained silent for a moment unsure of how to answer. He had no clue that his father had finalized the Oz deal. And he still hadn't told her that he had been kicked out. He looked back up to see her playing with the little spider in her fingers. A wistful smile crossed his face briefly. "I don't know what he was thinking. He's been driven by money for so long now. I remember a time when he wasn't like that." 

"Well, his greed has created an even bigger problem now." she said in a tight voice as she bent her head forward, the blonde locks screening her expression. 

"Why? What's happened?" Quatre asked, a bad feeling gripping his heart suddenly; she wouldn't be playing like that for no reason at all. It was too emotional. 

"The contract that your father made with Oz, they're cashing in on it now. I did some research and it turns out that he listed it as colony business." 

"And I guess it's not?" 

"What do you think?" Jess said as she stood up and started towards the wall. "What a bakayaro, as well as a bakana hidoi otoko, bakemono...[1]" she trailed off in various muttered curses. "I know he's your father and I apologize for what I said but I can't believe that he would..." she trailed off as she slammed her fist into the wall angrily. "As if that wasn't bad enough, how the hell am I supposed to solve this?!" 

"Hey, calm down. Maybe if you tell me something I can help." Quatre said walking up to her and placing his hands on her shoulders. 

She shook her head. "No. I won't. There's no way in hell that this is going to turn out good. The less of us involved the better. Five can still go on." 

"What are you talking about? Could you stop talking so cryptically?" 

She looked at him "Fine, I'll put it this way instead. If I go up and die, the five of you can still finish this. If two or three go, then it will be harder for the remaining few to actually accomplish something." 

"You mean to go up there to die? That's ridiculous Jess. If he did sell the colony resources, which is highly improbable, the people would protest such irresponsible actions." 

"And what if I told you that I was going up to the colonies Quatre; what would you say then?" 

"Uh...why aren't you pushing for the Treize thing anymore?" he gave a weak smile and shrug. "You were adamant about going to find him. Duo wasn't thrilled not to mention me." 

"Heh. You hid it better." she paused. "Nothing you can say is going to stop me Quatre. I am going up to the colonies." 

"Don't you think you should think this through before rushing up there like it's the end of the world?" 

She shook her head. "I'll think as I rush up there. It is the end in a way." stepping away from him, she paused as she ran her hand along the smooth black wood of the piano. "Someone has to be the sacrificial lamb. It just happens to be me." 

"Would you stop talking like that?" he asked as he walked up to her. "No one has to be a sacrificial lamb, certainly not you." 

"Don't start Quatre. I know your going to say something like 'There has to be another solution.' and 'I don't want you to do that. Please be reasonable.' Not this time Quatre...not this time." 

He paused as she started stonily at the door before walking closer to it. "And did you ever consider why I say those things? You always rush off on something that you deem to be important. For once would it kill you to relax and take an objective look at the situation?" he turned her around to face him. "Just slow down and let me in please." 

Her eyes softened before she turned away. "Quatre...could you just-" 

"Please?" he asked again, turning her back to face him. "I'm not asking for much. I just want you to be happy. I just want us to be happy. Is that too much to ask for?" 

She sighed as she hugged him tightly. "That's all I want too Quatre. It's not asking much." she whispered with a faint tinge of sad resignation. 

He held her close, unwilling to relinquish the feeling of her in his arms. "Then, you'll take an objective look at things?"   
"Gomen [2] Quatre..." 

He drew back slightly to look at her for her puzzling words. He never even saw or felt her hand rising up before it clipped him in the back of the neck hard and he fell down like a heavy sack. 

~*~

Stretches of sand greeted his eyes as he looked out the window for the countless time during the train ride. A feeling of slight anger and frustration welled up inside as he looked down at the small spider that rested on the palm of his hand. _'Jess...I can't believe that you did that...you really can be...but I know you'll need Anansi.'_ He broke off his train of thought as he watched the light wink off the amber; how long ago had he bought this for her? One month? Two? A few weeks? Time had seemed to pass by more quickly when she was around, no matter what the situation. The feeling of the train coming to a halt made him look up. It seemed that his stop was here. Grabbing his bag from the overhead compartment, he made his way out with the other passengers onto the loading platform. 

"It's been a long time Master Quatre." 

He looked up at the familiar voice to see Rashid stand before him with a smile. "It has Rashid. How have you been? And the others? Well I hope?" 

"Yes. The others send their regards. And you Master Quatre? Have you been doing well on your own?" 

"More or less, yes." he paused for a moment. "Do you know what I came for...finally?" 

"I have a pretty good idea Master Quatre." Rashid said as they headed out of the crowded station. "Abdul and Ahmed told me of Ms. Knight." 

An involuntary shudder passed through him. "I'd rather not recall that. I know I must have surprised you all by me walking out like that. Was Father mad?" 

"I think you surprised him as well Master Quatre. He does want what's best for you, you know. In his own way." 

"I suppose. But I couldn't tolerate it anymore. Is he still there or up in the colonies?" 

"Colonies Master Quatre; he said that he had business up there. To be honest, I don't like his involvement with Oz." 

"Neither did Jess. She got mad and nearly punched a hole in the wall, plus called him an assortment of things." Quatre paused. "How did you know that I was going to be here anyways?" 

"Miss Jess. She came by here earlier and left...with her Gundam." 

Quatre paused. "And she told you I was coming?" 

"She said that she figured that you were and not to let you know where she was going. She never even told us her destination. I can't help you there Master Quatre. She just showed up, took Anansi and left." 

Quatre didn't reply, simply nodding his head as they walked to the car and drove back to the house. He opened the door hesitantly, the same cool interior greeting him as before; he distinctly got the sensation that his father was going to come down the stairs and scold him. Brushing it aside, he walked in, heading for the stairs down into the hangar area. Standing there just as he left him was Sandrock, ready for battle. 

"Well old friend, it looks like we have to go to space." 

"I wouldn't advise that young man." 

Quatre started at the sound of the aged voice, turning to see a person half in shadow near the corner of the wall. He motioned for Rashid to put away the gun as he watched the person start to walk out of the shadows. The lined face came into view, wrinkly hands curled around the knob of a cane. Dark hair was streaked with vivid lines of white gleamed in the light. 

"Are you..." 

"I am Sensei V. Not that she ever bothers to refer to me as that." V sighed as she sat down in the chair. "That girl has a wide streak of various things in her." 

"What exactly are you doing here? How did you get past security?" Rashid asked as he placed himself between her and Quatre. 

"I do believe that this does concern Quatre Rashid and not you." V said in a firm voice. "Why don't you run along and see to the recommendations I left with your men?" 

Rashid spluttered for a few seconds. "I am not going to leave Master Quatre here alone with you. You simply waltzed in, bypassing security flagrantly and you expect me to let you talk to him like that?" 

"Hai [4]. Is there a problem with this?" 

"Ah...how do I know that you really know Jess?" Quatre asked, stepping out from behind Rashid; it was clear that Rashid was not pleased with this person. 

V's eyes flickered from Rashid to Quatre before she chuckled lightly to herself. "And do you plan on giving that back to her once you find her little Quatre? She is rather attached to it." 

"You can leave us Rashid. If there's any trouble, I'll let you know right away." Quatre said watching the lady carefully. 

A frown crossed his face briefly. "As you wish Master Quatre." he said before he left promptly. 

Drawing up a seat, Quatre sat down slowly, regarding the woman in front of him. "I don't believe that I've met you before." 

"You haven't. H talks very highly of you." V paused. "I am not really one for formalities. What did Jess do this time?" 

Quatre shook his head. "Clipped me on the back of the neck and took off. When I came to, all she left was her necklace and a note."   
"What did the note say?" 

"It said 'Q-kun, I want you to be happy." 

"Well now..." V gave him an amused glace. "And she hasn't told you anything? Never mind, that can wait for the moment. What did she tell you before she left?" 

"Just something about what my father did and that she didn't seem thrilled to be the one to solve it." 

"Do you realize what he has done?" 

"From Jess' reaction, something very foolish and irresponsible. Since she wasn't too clear on it-" 

"To make matters short, he gave Oz the foothold they've been looking for. And I am sure you know that the Winner empire stretches far and wide. Why don't you take a look at this as you head up? I have a feeling that you will want to have a few words with your father little Quatre." 

Quatre took the proffered disk like it was a hot coal. "It's all here?" 

"Hai, the entirety of it, though it doesn't explain about the large amounts of gundanium that Oz has been shipping around; that should be self-explanatory." 

"Gundanium?" he regarded her for a minute. "It's already expensive enough." 

"Oz oversteps themselves." V rose slowly. "Pop it into the drive here and take a look. You may be surprised at some of the lucrative business practices that goes on in the organization." 

Quatre walked over and seated himself down in front of the drive. It didn't take long before he pulled the information up and started skimming over it. _'Allah...how could he have agreed to such a contract?'_ Turning back around to say something to V he found himself facing an empty space. Looking back at the screen, he ejected the disk and opened the door. There stood Rashid against the wall. 

"Is everything all right Master Quatre?" Rashid asked, seeing him standing there, holding the disk tightly. 

"Yes Rashid. Prepare Sandrock. I am going up to have a few words with Father." 

~*~

Patches of green greeted his eyes as Quatre sat in his father's chair, looking out over the curve of the colony. _'So now it comes down to this.'_ Never a million years would Quatre have thought his father capable of such actions. Yet even when he arrived and accessed the Foundation's database, it was all there, confirming what was on the disk from Oz. And here he found himself, in a place that he was forbidden from since childhood. Rising from the leather chair easily, Quatre gazing down at the streets; even now, he could see protestors down on the sidewalks, stirring up a crowd. _'It wouldn't surprise me if the citizens knew of this already. . .there have been some who never trusted the Winner Foundation. And their fears are now justified. It's bad enough that base went up in flames shortly after I left and people suddenly grew very anti-rebels.'_ He turned away with a sad sigh, seating himself back down in the seat and closed his eyes; his father should be back in here any minute now. His meetings would be over for the day. 

"And tell the colony citizens that there is nothing to worry about concerning Oz. Fill in the rest with whatever you want by get the main message across." 

Quatre didn't move as the door opened and shut quietly to be followed by an exhausted sigh. It was only when the chair was turned around that he finally opened his eyes. 

"Quatre!!" his father took a step back clearly surprised. 

"Hello Father." Quatre rose with deliberate slowness. "How have you been?" 

"What are you doing here? I thought I told you-" 

"I know and remember what you said Father. And yet, I do find myself here in your office. Aren't you the least bit curious as to why I am here after your express order?" he waited patiently for a response. 

"Why are you here? To apologize and come back?" 

"No Father. I find that I am doing pretty well on my own. But I have been keeping an eye on things and one of your contracts has drawn my attention. I'm sure that you're familiar with the Oz one?" 

His father's face paled visibly as the slight stiffening of the shoulders went almost unnoticed. "I am. That was a good deal." 

"Good deal? You define a good deal by leaving the colony citizen's to starve and become destitute? What about my sisters? Would you have left them here too as well to suffer?" 

"They would be taken care of; they still reside under my roof." Quatre's father came to the side of the desk. "I'm sure that the people of the colony will understand that this is for their benefit." 

"And how is that? I saw the conditions here as I came; they suspect something from the Foundation and when they find out for sure, there will be bloodshed Father. How could you willingly let the colony erupt into such violence? You always told me as a child to avoid fighting when possible." 

"I said that because you weren't the strongest of children Quatre. I never thought you would take it to heart and become a pacifist."   
"I'd more call myself a partial pacifist. Do you know that Oz is making good on that contract now?" 

"Yes. But our last shipment of supplies should be coming in now." his father sat back into the chair. "It's all been planned out, so that the citizens can survive for the next few months. It will require the tightening of belts, yes, but they will survive." 

Quatre placed his palms on the desk and looked his father in the eye as he leaned forward slightly. "And do you know about the gundanium and the resource satellites Father?" 

"Gundanium? I gave them rights to utilize the resource satellites as a way station." 

Quatre's mouth twisted into a wry smile. "Guess what they're doing there? It doesn't take a genius to figure it out. They've been shipping large amounts of gundanium parts to MO-6 Father, almost like they've been assembling the pieces of a puzzle." 

"That's ridiculous Quatre." his father rose and walked up to the window, looking out. 

"Father, open your eyes!" Quatre said rather forcefully. "This is Oz, in the middle of a war. They won't be beyond anything. If it takes the fall of a company and whoever else involved, they'll do it. Do you even know who's in charge of Oz now with Treize gone?" 

"Colonel Une and Colonel Samuel, exemplary leaders in times like these." 

Quatre rubbed the bridge of his nose wearily. "Father, you aren't listening are you? The deal you made with Oz was a bad idea and I'm sorry to say it but you'll regret it soon enough." 

"Quatre, nothing is going to happen. The limits were set in the contract and as such Oz is bound to honour them." 

"And you said that I was hopeful." Quatre sighed. "Father, I am asking you to do whatever you can to counter the deal with Oz. Nothing good can come of it." 

"I shall decide that Quatre. So far, things have been going rather nicely. Oz stays out of our affairs and leaves us alone. They protect the area and-" 

A brief knock on the door made them pause and look up. Upon his father's word to enter, he saw Rashid come in with a grim look on his face as he shut the door quietly. 

"What is it Rashid?" Quatre asked. "What's wrong?" 

"There's an unidentified ship coming towards the colony. It hasn't responded to any of our hails. Perhaps if you tried..." Rashid trailed off with a laden pause. 

"I'll take it from here, thank you." 

Quatre watched as his father seated himself down in front of the computer terminal and connected to the radio. With a sigh he leaned against the desk as his father hailed the ship, demanding some form of identification from the pilot. He started suddenly as a static filled reply came through. 

"Do you copy? I...fixed...radio. Do you copy, someone, come in." 

"We copy. Identify yourself please. Where are you coming from?" Quatre said before his father could blurt out a belligerent reply. 

"This...Cap...Sproule spea...coming in...resource satellite MO-6." 

"From MO-6? How close are you to the satellite?" Quatre asked, edging his father out of the seat. 

"Not very....about a few more...have to let....they're chasing me...can't last very long." 

"Rashid, see if you can send someone to help this man out; he's being chased down, probably all the way from MO-6." 

"Quatre what are you doing? This is clearly not your-" 

"Dear God, they caught up...evasive action...move it or we're...." the rest of the transmission ended with the brief sound of a blast before the line went dead. 

Silence came as Rashid and Quatre looked at his father who had turned slightly pasty. Quatre didn't say a word as he looked at his father wordlessly. The resolute expression that he had seen there before cracked now, uncertainty seeping in slowly. Shaking his head he rose and headed towards the door. 

"If you need my assistance, I'll be here on the colony. I'll stop by once in awhile and you can let me know then." 

He walked out, barely giving his father anytime to respond, leaning against the door with closed eyes. 

"Are you sure that was a wise idea Master Quatre?" Rashid asked. 

"Father has to see that I am not little child anymore. If anything I can help him with this situation before I leave for good." he paused. "It would now seem that Oz is starting to make its position a bit clearer." 

Rashid simply nodded in response before he spoke again. "Shall you be handling this on your own or shall you be calling for some reinforcements?" 

"I'll handle this myself. The others will most likely have their hands full and trying to get into space with a Gundam will be near impossible." he looked up at his burly friend. "You don't have to help me with this if...why am I even bothering; I know exactly what you're going to say. Not that it bothers me much." 

Rashid blinked at him a bit blankly for the first time. "Are you referring to the fact that I would not let you go into battle like that by yourself?" 

"Yes." he couldn't stop the chuckle that rose up. "I should do that more often...the look on your face was rather priceless." 

"How very amusing Master Quatre. Perhaps now would be the time to find you some suitable lodging while you're staying here in the colony." 

"I found a place already Rashid. A small little motel; it's out of the way, close to where Sandrock is, close to the house and your room is right beside mine, so you should have no worries." he said as they started down the hallway. 

Rashid looked at him for a moment before he laughed. "Perhaps Master Quatre, you can be a bit too thorough." 

~*~

_**Notes**_   
[1] bakayaro, bakana hidoi otoko, bakemono   
bakayaro - bastard   
bakana hidoi otoko - stupid cruel man   
bakemono - monster   
[2] Gomen - sorry   
[3] Onegai - please 


	19. Nineteen

_**Torment of Paradise**_

~*~

Chapter 19

~*~

With a heavy sigh, Jess gazed out the window as she rested her hand against the sill. _'Goddamn traffic never moves like it's supposed to. I hate rush hour sometimes.'_ Trying to dissipate the frustration inside, she honked the horn. 

"Hold your horses!" came the rough voice from the car in front of her. 

"Why don't ya move it and save us all the trouble of being here, you baka!! I have places to get to!!" she yelled back as she stuck her head out. "Goddamn idiots don't know how to drive." she muttered as she pulled her head back in. 

She sunk back into the seat, looking up at the fake driver's license stuck behind the flap above the window; the last thing she needed was a cop pulling her over and checking that piece of plastic. _'Now I have to get to Treize and see if he'll go back; this time, if Samuel wins, its going to be over my dead body.'_ Her hand crept up to her neck to play with the silver chain that should have been there, only now it was gone. Rubbing her neck, she frowned slightly before rubbing the bridge of her nose. _'Please don't be mad at me Q-kun.'_ Seeing the cars before her finally start to move, she eased her way through the traffic until she was driving down a plain dirt country road. 

"Ah yes, here's the part I hate about driving cars." she muttered as she jounced along the rocky road. 

Soon enough, the path grew smaller and smaller until was basically a trail in the grass. Coming to a fork in the path, she drove up the left one and continued on. It was when she finally came to a cabin hidden away from the rest of the world. Locking the car behind her, she walked up and knocked on the door. 

"Hello?" she called as she opened it and walked in slowly; she hadn't received an answer. 

A shadowed interior was filled by only by a few tables and chairs with a bookcase at the side crammed full of tattered old volumes. _'Lara had better be here; I told her she had to watch Treize like a hawk…well… that's basically what I told her.'_ She looked around once more; the signs that people had inhabited the cabin was evident enough, so why was it as if no one was there? A slightly muffled sound made her turn to see a hallway, a lone door at the end of it. Walking up to it, she pressed her ear to it, voices coming from inside. 

"Yeesh, is there a reason why you people couldn't answer me and…" she trailed off as she opened the door and froze at what she saw. Treize was in bed with that one of all people? It took her a full moment before she slammed the door shut and stared down the end of the hall in shock. "I'm really sorry, but no one answered and I didn't know that you were…busy. I'll just wait at the table." 

She practically bolted to the chair and sat down, pulling at the end of her shirtsleeve with some embarrassment. A few minutes later, Treize came and sat in the chair beside her at the table with a rather amused expression.   
"It's nice to see you again Miss Jess." 

"Likewise, Treize." she paused as Wufei came and sat down at the table with a belligerent expression. "And it's been a really long time since I've seen you Wufei. Although…I'd rather not see that particular part of you ever again." 

Wufei's face went bright red as he shot Jess a look. "What are you here for onna [1]? And what did you do to your hair?" 

"I'm here to talk to Treize, if you don't mind and my hair is none of your business. Do you know what's been happening?" she asked facing him. "Then I'll keep it simple," she said once he nodded his head. "You need to go back and take your position."   
"And dispel the rumors of my demise? Perhaps I can do more good if I stay dead." Treize said easily. 

"And let Une and Samuel have the time of their lives while they create even more problems?" Jess shook her head. "What can I say to get you to take your job back? And just where is Lara anyway?" 

"I sent her off with Zechs." Treize said with a shrug. "Once I found out that someone else was paying me a visit, I told her that she could leave. I believe that they went to the Pacific to get some things done." 

Jess watched catching the look passed between Wufei and Treize. "All right, but you're the only one who kept them in line. They're up in the colonies now and all hell is about to break lose unless you go back and I stop them somehow." 

Treize paused for a moment as he looked at her. "Where's your necklace?"   
"Necklace?" 

"That little spider. Just like it, you do weave webs rather well." 

Jess paused for a moment. "I gave it to someone for safe keeping. That's all. What is it going to take to get you to go back Treize?" 

He rose, looking out the window for a second. "Do you realize the upheaval that will happen if I go back." 

"Do you realize the upheaval that will occur in the colonies if Une and Samuel have their way? This will end up in a massacre unless you go back and maintain your position you had before this all started. I don't mean to intrude upon you and Wufei here but I wouldn't ask unless I felt it to be absolutely necessary. " 

"True." Treize paused for a moment. "And how would you propose to end their little game?" 

"We go into space. And cut them short before they can do any real irreparable damage. I take care of Samuel and you take care if that contract on Oz's end and I'll see to the other end." 

"Hmph. And you want to go into space? Just like that?" Wufei rose with a less than pleased expression. "Onna, have you lost your senses?" 

"No I haven't Wufei. If I have to fight my way up to space and stop them, then so be it. " Jess rose now. "I know that I am asking a lot of you Treize, but the fact remains that things do have to go back to the way they were for the time being. Because if they don't, everyone will rue the day that Oz decided to meddle in space; Earth, the colonies and the organization itself." 

"You're saying that you'll escort me to space and see that I take back my position, right?" 

"Yes Treize. That's what I am saying. I don't need Wufei's help on this." she said sliding the Chinese man an oblique glance.   
"Onna, I m coming also; you're bound to mess up at some point." he stated. 

"I don't need your help Wufei; or the attitude that I can't do anything at all. Just because I am a woman doesn't mean that I am completely defenseless." 

"Onna, you can't even make it to your own bed when you are tired; I am coming." 

"Fine!" she threw up her hands in mock disgust. "Be that way; just don't tick me off too much all right!? I'm not in the mood to argue with you right now." 

"The same thing from you onna!" he retorted back.   
"Are you two done? I haven't exactly agreed to anything yet." Treize said quietly. 

"I know Treize…but I know that you can't exactly see this pass by so easily and that you'll end up coming at some point." Jess said as she crossed her arms. 

Treize laughed, shaking his head; she did have him there in that respect. "Very well. I shall go back. And Wufei…you really shouldn't let yourself be manipulated like that. You just did exactly what she wanted." 

"I did no such thing." he looked at Jess guardedly. 

"Sorry Wu-man, but you did. I figure two is better than one. I know you would have flat out refused me if I had asked and given me some lecture I didn't want, so I pushed a few buttons. And besides," she repressed the urge to giggle. "We can't have anything happening to your koi [2] now can we?" 

~*~

_'Space…it's so beautiful from here.'_ Jess looked out the window of the shuttle that was carrying her, Wufei and Treize to MO-6. _'Maybe one day, I'll come and live up here and get away from Earth for a bit.'_ She looked over at Wufei and Treize working away at their consoles. The jammers she had installed on the ship were delicate and required constant attention if they were to be maximized to their full potential. She shifted her hands on the throttles, making the grip more comfortable. _'Colony XGL4-1256 is coming up; better stop off for fuel and gather some information.'_

"All right guys, we're making a pit stop," she said as she glanced back. "A colony is coming up and I want to get some fuel. Did you want anything while we're there?" she shrugged at the shaking of heads. "Suit yourselves. "It's a while to MO-6." 

Soon enough, she found herself easing the ship into the fueling port and heading to the small shop. _'It going to be a while now; there's at least five other ships ahead of me. I just hope that they don't decide to search the cargo hold.'_ She had brought her Gundam with her as a precaution and judging from the amount of mobile suits she saw as they were at the shuttle port and guarding some of the colonies they had passed, it was a good thing she had brought it with her. She stood in the snack aisle, looking through her selections, when she heard two voices talking. 

"Yeah, I heard that the Winner Foundation sold out to Oz."   
"His son is here too. He's probably in on the whole deal and seeing it through." 

'Quatre's here?!' She kept looking at the snacks, edging closer to the conversation. 

"They plan to storm the building in a few days and confront the head Winner and his son. They are going to have some explaining to do if what we suspect to be true is." 

Grabbing some random packages, she moved to the counter and paid before heading out. _'This is not good.'_ She paused by the passage door, unsure if what she heard was simply rumor or the truth. Her eyes widened as she recognized the tall tanned figure moving through the small crowd towards a seedy looking motel. _'Quatre must be here; there's Rashid.'_ Walking into the passage, she bolted back to the ship and plunked herself down in the pilot's seat before she numbly took out something and started to eat it. 

"Onna, don't you hear when someone is calling you? And my name is Wufei, not 'Wu-man'." he added after a brief pause. 

Looking up, she saw Wufei glaring down at her, Treize sitting in his seat and reading a book. "What?" 

"What's wrong with you? You look like you've seen a ghost or something? Lost your stomach and can't fly anymore?" 

"Shut up Wufei. And it's not that. Things are coming to a head much more quickly than I anticipated. A rebellion could break out in a few days or less. Things need to be straightened out in Oz as soon as possible." 

He frowned before he sat down in the seat beside her. "How can you eat such trash?" 

She looked down at the Ho-Ho in her hand before taking another bite out of it and chewed with relish. "I like my chocolate if you don't mind. Are we next for refueling?" 

"Yes. What on Earth is the matter with you? You look like you swallowed some battery acid." he paused, with a half-interested expression on his face. 

"Not happening anytime soon Wu-man, sorry to disappoint you. Quatre's here as well. I think he came up to reason with his father." 

"Let Winner take care of his own problems and you deal with yours." Wufei shrugged. "I suggest you move the ship forward or else we won't be refueling anytime soon." 

Nodding her head and ignoring his condescending tone, she shoved the rest of the Ho-Ho in her mouth and guided the ship forward, absentmindedly waiting out the refueling process. After receiving the green go-ahead, she eased the sip away and before long, they were back on their way to MO-6. _'Quatre's problem is my problem and I can't exactly let it pass by like that. This problem may kill the both of us soon enough.'_

~*~

"Cripes, this seat is hard. The damn spacesuit doesn't help much either…" she shifted herself slightly, as she looked over at the monitors on the console before her. "Why can't they pad these things instead of making them out of such hard plastic?" 

"Must you always have some complaint onna? It's driving me insane!" Wufei muttered as he shot her a look. 

"Kami-sama [3]…I don't believe it…Wufei admitted something!! To an onna!!" she retorted in a slightly sarcastic tone of voice. 

"Don't start with me onna; you won't know what-" he warned in a low mumble. 

"Are you two quite done?" Treize asked in a slightly irritated voice. "We have some mobile suits up ahead." 

Jess glanced back down at her console, seeing the red blips flashing on the screen. _'And we were only a few minutes away from MO-6. I can see it up ahead. Maybe we can bluff our way through this one.'_

"All right guys, let me do the talking and I think I can wing it through." 

"Wing it through? I knew this was a bad idea…" Wufei groaned as he sank into his seat. "Why the hell did I indulge you onna and not bring along Nataku?" 

"And your suit is best for battles in space? Mine is, so suck it up. I outclass you in speed, which we would need at the moment. And my suit fit into the cargo hold, not yours. Now shut up and let me talk." 

She glared at Wufei until he sank back into his seat with a thoroughly disgruntled look on his face. Looking back at the radio, she set up the radio link and called out to the leader of the mobile suits before her. _'Don't let them be dolls, please, please, please…'_ She waited anxiously as the radio crackled with static from her call out. 

"We copy." came the reply. "State your business here at MO-6." 

"Bringing in the shipment of gundanium parts." she replied easily. "Are we in the wrong here?"   
"No. That shipment wasn't supposed to come until two days from now. Guess you're early then."   
"Yup." she said with a mental sigh of relief. "We figured it best to get it here as soon as possible; it wasn't secure lying around the base like that and it could have been compromised." 

"All right then. Fill out the clearance forms when you dock at the port." 

A wild surge of glee filled her as they eased past the mobile suits and continued on to MO-6. Once they were safely away from the suits and the resource satellite was coming into view, she changed course and swung around to the back, docking at an old unused port. Motioning to them silently, she walked off of the ship and headed to the old docking control room, booting up the power. Moving swiftly, she unloaded Anansi and set her up in the dusty old hangar. 

"And what do we do now?" Wufei asked in a slightly mocking tone. 

"Why Wufei, do you think I would come all this way and not be prepared?" she asked in a cold voice as she drew the gun out of its back holster and checked it over. "We are going to have a small talk with Samuel and Une…make them see the error of their ways." 

Slowly, they walked down the hall, their footsteps echoing off the empty walls. Through winding halls they steadily made their way to the main office, where Samuel and Une set up shop; it was nice to have downloaded a floor plan ahead of time. They ducked into a narrow shadowed niche as a troop of soldiers came tramping past them. 

"The office is just up this way. Let's hurry shall we?" Jess said. 

Making it to the door at the end, Jess peered at the lock carefully before taking out a pin and bending down to unlock it. A few seconds later the latch gave with a clicking sound; the door swung open to reveal a dark interior. Treize stepped in easily enough, his eyes looking around for the first sign of danger. 

"There's no one here." Jess said after a few minutes later as she switched on the dim lights. "I'm just going to get started on deleting all those files of the contract that was made. If you'll excuse me." 

Going to the computer, she went through easily enough and started erasing all the files and directories pertaining to the contract. She rose with a smile starting to speak but the door opening made her stop. 

"Jess?!"   
She looked to see Quatre's figure in the doorway, the little amber spider around his neck. "Nande kuso [4]?! What are you doing here?!" 

"Me? What are you doing here? I came to revoke the contract." he said stepping into the room and closing the door. 

She paused as she saw some hardness in his eyes. "Revoke the contract? You mean you actually reasoned with your father?" 

"In a manner of speaking…" 

The words sounded so bitter and twisted…something had happened. "Listen Quatre, you shouldn't be here; that's why I left you on Earth. I am planning to destroy this resource satellite." she blocked out Wufei's loud protests. "Just leave and let me get to my job." 

"No. I'm tired of you always trying to martyr yourself." 

"Martyr myself?" she looked at him. "Never mind…Samuel isn't here is he?" 

"He is. Une isn't." Quatre paused. "Would you really destroy this satellite?" 

"And you would let the gundanium stay in Oz's hands?" she asked looking him dead in the eye.   
"Don't be so hard on him, Miss Jess." Treize said stepping forward. "I believe it would take a certain amount of courage to do something like this in the current situation." 

"I'm being hard on him because-" 

"Onna, don't start this again." Wufei groaned. 

"Be quiet and let her talk Wufei." Quatre said in an exasperated voice. 

"The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated you know. I do find myself to be alive and well at the moment." 

She stopped at the sound of Treize's voice to see the door open the light from the hallway illuminating the room. Samuel's silhouette cast in as he surveyed the scene before him and for the first time in her life, Jess saw the one emotion she never thought she would see from him; fear. He bolted down the hallway, slamming the door shut behind him. With a muttered curse, Quatre ran out the door after him 

"Wufei, get Treize out of here and initiate the self-destruct!" she said as she ran to the door, her gun drawn. 

"But-" 

"Do it!!" she ordered as she headed down the hall after Quatre's figure. 

Her feet pounded against the metal as she ran deep into the heart of the satellite, Quatre's head drawing steadily closer. Finally she saw him dash into a room, the door closing steadily. _'I'm not going to make it…'_ She pushed herself, only to reach as the door whooshed shut. With a muttered curse, she pounded against it and looked around, spying the ventilation duct. Ripping off the grate frantically, she holstered her gun and pulled herself in, crawling down the vent. Suddenly the sound of a siren bounced around crazily, making her wince as she went on, coming rapidly to the end. _'At least Wufei activated the self-destruct.'_ Coming to the end, she turned around to kick the grate out but stopped hearing voices. 

"So you decide to come back and pester me again do you?" 

Jess gritted her teeth at the sound of Samuel's voice. _'Jackass.'_

"I could say the same of you." Quatre's voice was still and accusatory almost. "Why did you do it? I know it was you." 

"He was becoming a bother and all; too many questions and he wouldn't stop with them so I dealt with the situation." 

She started at the sound of Quatre's growl but stopped again hearing the cock of a gun. 

"Now, I wouldn't do that if I were you Winner. I have a gun and you do-" 

The sound of the gun being fired made her kick at the grate, knocking it out in less than a second. Slithering to the floor, she saw Quatre and Samuel wrestling for the gun. _'Kami no, this can end up so wrong.'_ She scrambled to her feet running towards them, when the gun fired again, a river of blood, pudding beneath their feet. Then he slowly slid to the ground, not moving once he landed in a pool of the bright ruby liquid. 

"Quatre!" she screamed horrified at what had happened before her eyes. 

"Oh, so you're here now too?" Samuel turned the gun on her. "I suggest you come over here like the obedient wife that you're supposed to be so we can go back to our marital bliss." 

With wooden steps, she forced herself to walk to Samuel, her eyes never leaving Quatre's body. Once she came close enough, he grabbed her and pulled her close to him. 

"Maybe I should leave you her to die with him." Samuel whispered in her ear. "Would you like to die with your lover; that is what he is isn't he?" 

"Hai." She said softly. "He is." 

She narrowed her eyes at the shock on Samuel's face before she socked him one in the jaw hard and kicked the gun away as she whipped out hers before edging closer to Quatre's body. Samuel staggered to his feet, blood running from a gash in his face now as he glared bloody murder at her. 

"You'll pay for that." he spat venomously. 

"Will I?" she said in an icy voice. "I think it's time you paid. You've hurt him and me for the last time Samuel; the last time. I want nothing more to do with you and when this is all said and done, I never want to see your face again. Give me a divorce." 

"You'll never leave me." he laughed. "There's no way that I'll let you go now. You know too much and are much too valuable as a pilot and in other regards; we need a Gundam pilot on our side." he twitched as if making a break for his gun in the far corner. 

Jess cocked the gun automatically. "I wouldn't do that if I were you. I wouldn't hesitate to kill your sorry ass." 

"Jess…" 

She looked down to see Quatre's bloody hand clutching at the material of her spacesuit. "Quatre!" 

"Don't kill him." he paused, breathing hard. "He's not worth it. Don't kill anymore. Please…" 

Jess swallowed hard before bending down, her gun still trained on Samuel. "I won't kill him Quatre." she said in a whisper as she touched his face. "Don't worry, I'll get you out of here." 

He gave her a faint smile before closing his eyes. Jess looked back up to see Samuel whirling around the gun in his hands. Reacting instantly, she fired, the shots ringing out as the gun clattered back down to the floor from his hands and he curled up into a ball, clutching at his groin. Jess dropped her gun and ripped off Samuel's shirt before going back to Quatre. Pulling him up, she started ripping he shirt into strips and bandaging it around his wound. 

"You killed him?" he asked softly. 

"No. I just caused him the world of pain Q-kun." she said tears starting to come to her eyes. "Now do you see why I didn't want you rushing up here?" 

He closed his eyes again. "Everything will be all right now." he breathed softly. "Peace will come to the universe. For a little bit at least." 

Jess paused as she tied off the bandages and he slumped against her. "Q-kun…you've lived here all your life. I wouldn't be surprised if you knew that for sure." 

Managing to pull one of his arms over her shoulder, she went to the door and unlocked it, heading down the hallway. _'I have ten minutes to get him out of here and destroy the base myself; I want none of that gundanium to be left floating around when I am done here.'_ She pulled him along what seemed to be torturously slow until the hangar door came into view. 

"Onna!" 

She paused as she walked into the old hangar, seeing Wufei waiting by the gangplank door.   
"I'll take him. You do what you must." 

Jess didn't say anything, giving him silent thanks as she handed over Quatre's inert body. "I'll catch up with you guys on Earth." 

"I'll leave him at the house by the sea." Wufei said before he headed up the gangplank to the ship. 

Silently, Jess watched as the door shut and the ship soon detached from the satellite, speeding away easily. Walking to Anansi, she opened the cockpit door and settled herself into the familiar seat. 

"How have you been my old friend? I know I have been neglecting you lately. Did you have fun spending time with Sandrock?" she asked in a quiet voice. 

The Gundam made a small series of noises that sounded almost miffed, annoyed and accepting. With a chuckle she sliced her way through the wall and flew out into the coldness of space. She paused as she noticed the switch by the throttle, just hidden away from view. _'Is this what those soldiers were talking about? If it is…'_ Her finger hovered around the button before she flipped it. She barely noticed the yellow glow out of the corner of her eyes as she took out the other pike and twirled it around. _'Go for the heart of the satellite…'_ The thought was followed immediately by Anansi flying out around the corner, banking sharply as the target came into view; the outside power generator. It was big and connected to the main generator inside; hitting the core deep enough would end it all. Deactivating one of the pikes, she snapped the ends together, forming a long staff. Before she twirled it around and plunged it right down into the main reactor, setting off explosions inside that rocked the satellite. _'Done.'_ Her fingers lingered back to the button, almost hesitant to shut it off. Steeling herself, she flicked the switch, the yellow glow fading away fast. She hesitated for a moment, as the explosions became more evident now, pieces of MO-6 hurtling off into space as the satellite exploded from the inside out. 

"Everything will be all right now." she murmured Quatre's words aloud before she turned away from the main explosion and headed after the shuttle and towards Earth. "The one with an unchuu no kokoro[5]…" 

~*~

_**Notes**_   
[1] Onna - woman   
[2] koi - lover   
[3] Kami-sama - God…but that's saying it in a respectful way. Some people just say 'Kami'   
[4] Nande kuso?! - What the hell?!   
[5] unchuu no kokoro - You know, that thing everyone says that Quatre has. It means 'heart/spirit (whatever word floats your boat) of the universe.' 


	20. Twenty

_**Torment of Paradise **_

~*~

Chapter 20 

~*~

_The breeze rustled around Quatre as he stood on the hill, looking down at the tree below. The swing moved rather forlornly on the thick old branch, a gentle creaking sound reaching his ears as he walked down and sat on it. _

"So this is what it's like to be dead." he said softly as he gazed around the green field. 

He looked down at his clothes, the plain khaki slacks and blue button down shirt greeting his eyes; he certainly didn't look dead. The last thing he remembered was the gun going off and the searing pain in his shoulder followed by faint recollections of Jess' face and voice; that sweet voice he would never hear again. He sighed sadly as some of h is last words to her drifted across his mind, the ones of anger in particular. Picking a blade of grass, he studied it closely, trying to wash away the feelings of remorse inside it would seem that he would be here by himself for a very long time. Absentmindedly, he rubbed his shoulder, a stinging sensation spreading throughout it, almost like when the bullet hit him but lesser. 

"Odd...should I feel this if I'm dead?" he mumbled as he peered down at the joint. 

"Unchuu no kokoro..." 

Quatre looked around at the faint words; he was ceratin that was Jess' voice that had uttered them. After looking warily around for a bit and brushing it aside, he closed his eyes and sank back against the smooth wood of the swing. It would seem that he would be here by himself for a very long time. 

~*~

Bright sunlight lashed at his pupils as he opened his eyes slightly. With a groan, he shut them again hastily as he tried to sit up from the soft surface but collapsed back down as pain lashed through his shoulder joint. 

"Take it easy Q-kun. Just lay back down and rest." 

He forced his eyelids open, blinking as the light flooded in and blinded him temporarily. Slowly, everything came into focus, revealing the light airy bedroom, the tangy smell of the sea wafting in from the curtained windows. Blinking slowly, he turned his attenntion to the face hovering above him anxiously. 

"Jess?!" he started as he tried to sit back up again and managed to pull his shoulder. 

"Didn't I tell you to take it easy?" she said as she helped him lean back into the large overstuffed pillows. "You'll strain your shoulder and Iria will kill me if I let anything else happen to her little brother." 

Quatre didn't say anything as he simply looked up at her, her brown eyes flashing violet with worry. Jess gave him a faint smile as she reached over to the night table and wrung a cloth before mopping his brow with it. 

"Jess..." 

"Hai?" she looked at him as she placed the cloth back in the basin. "Do you want your pillow fluffed? Are you thirsty?" 

He shook his head. "Did you sleep at all? Your eyes are circled a bit." 

"I took naps and all." she said as she edged her chair closer to the edge of the bed. 

"Iria was here?" 

"Yeah. She says that I am a bad influence on you; you never got shot before meeting me. You yourself look like you need the sleep." 

"I'm just a bit tired." he said as he looked out the window again. "Back where it all began..." 

"Yeah..." Jess looked out the window with a slightly distant look on her face. 

"How did I end up here?" he asked quietly watching the light curtains flutter with the breeze. 

"Wufei brought you here. I called Iria on my way down from space. Turns out she was on Earth, looking for a house." 

"Oh. You said something?" 

"Pardon? The thing about Wufei bringing you or Iria and the house?" 

"No, something about an oochie onko something. What was that again?" 

Her face went bright red. "I never told you about that...you were with Wufei when..." she trailed off, realizing that she had incriminated herself. 

"Back when you destoyed the satellite I suppose. What was it that you said?" 

She smiled at him, the anxiousness starting to vanish from her eyes. "Unchuu...not oochie. Unchuu no kokoro; it means 'heart of the universe'. If anyone has that, it's you Q-kun. You use your head and your heart to protect the tenuous peace in space." 

"Has peace come to..." he trailed off seeing her nod. 

"For the past few days, the mess that was made is being cleaned up rather nicely by Treize; many countries had to be appeased. Turns out Une and Samuel weren't just messing around with the colonies. So I had Wufei see Treize off safely and things are going back to the way they were before." 

"Wufei?" Quatre blinked in surprise. "Wufei actually took Treize to where he needed to go? Without a fuss? Maybe I really am dead and this is some weird sort of dream." 

"No, it's not." she said with a laugh. "Wufei had his reasons for taking Treize. Seeing as how I interrupted them and all." 

"Interrupted them?" Quatre asked. 

"They were...duelling when I showed up and crashed the party." 

Quatre watched as her face went a bright red. "Duelling...don't tell me you mean-" 

"I do." 

"Treize and Wufei?" 

"Hai" 

"I thought Treize was married..." 

"So did I. Talk about coming out of the closet." 

"He's having an affair with his enemy?" 

"Go figure?" she said with a shrug. 

Quatre shook his head as he tried to sit up a bit more. "I don't think I want to even ask. And what about-" 

"He's dead. I didn't shoot him like you wanted me too; you were right, he wasn't worth it at all." 

Reaching forward, Quatre took her hand in his and held it lightly. "And it's all over now. 

Jess shook her head, her hand closing around his tighter. "No, it's not; "it never will be until this war is over." 

"Until the war is over? Jess, what are you talking about?" 

She didn't say anything for a few minutes, her hand starting to shake slightly. Slowly, Quatre laced his fingers through hers, helping her to keep her hand still. Her eyes shifted to their hands before she finally spoke. 

"It's all right. I brought you one of your favourite books. Want me to read it to you?" 

Quatre simply nodded his head as he patted the space beside him. Taking the book from the table, she settled down beside him and started reading aloud, the book resting between them. Every once in awhile, he glanced at the book before focusing on her face. Finally, unable to take it anymore, he closed the book and faced her. 

"Tell me." 

Jess didn't say anything as she started at the blanket before speaking quietly. "I thought I never needed it, I could get by without the love of another person ever. Have friends yes, but be truly loved..." she shook her head. "But then you came along into my life and everything was flipped upside down for me in a manner of speaking. And then all this crap started." 

Quatre didn't say anything as he pulled her closer to him, sensing her need to be held and understood. 

"All that time passed by and it became stronger and stronger until it had suddenly sprung up on me; I hadn't even realized it. And I tried to deny it I suppose, causing myself more grief and heartache in the long run of things. It all really hit home when I saw you get shot with my own two eyes Q-kun. And that's why I'm afraid." 

"Afraid? Afraid of what?" he asked, looking at her slightly puzzled. 

"Of getting to close to you; you know how easily we can die. For all I know I could die tomorrow, it could be Duo, it could be any one of us. I don't want to hurt you Q-kun and I don't think I'm strong enough to survive if you died out there. I don't even want to go into how horrendous it was when I thought Samuel had killed you." 

Quatre didn't say anything,simply stroking her shoulder gently with his good hand. She snuggled in closer, resting against his chest lightly, her skin warm against his. They simply sat there for awhile before Jess shifted and looked up at him. 

"But I think it's worth the risk of a broken heart. I think it's worth so much more..." 

"So do I." Quatre whispered as he looked into her eyes. 

A slight flush spread across her face as she nodded her head with a lopsided sort of smile. Quatre tucked away a loose bang of hair behing her ear, letting his fingers follow the curve of her cheek and rest and cup her chin. Her hands slid up and around his neck as he leaned in closer and kissed her gently before it became a bit more ardent both of them unwilling to believe that they had come so close to losing each other. The delicate scent of ginger invaded his senses as his hands wandered down to her waist to pull her closer. He winced suddenly as a spasm seized up his shoulder and made him draw back. 

"Are you OK?" Jess asked as she looked over the white linen bandage. 

"Yeah, I just need to rest this shoulder." Quatre said with a face. 

Jess snuggled back into his arm, laying down beside him. "I thought I lost you back there Q-kun." 

He rested the top of his head against hers, stroking her shoulder with his good side. "I'll always be here for you Jessica, no matter what." he murmured. 

She didn't reply simply sighing with content and wrapping her arms around his waist and closing her eyes. Quatre couldn'thelp but smile when she had fallen sleep, still holding onto him. Stroking her hair, he watched as she breathed evenly and slowly. Gently brushing aside a lock of her hair, he closed his eyes _'The torment is finally over. We can enjoy this little paradise that we have...'_ And with that he finally drifted off to sleep. 


End file.
